2009-06 Common Ground Magazine by Common Ground Magazine Canada

40th anniversary

Give Peace a Chance “When John and I sang ‘Give Peace A Chance’ from our Bed-In in Montreal, we had no idea the song would become an anthem not only for our time but for generations to come…” – Yoko Ono, NYC, 2009

Arthur Erickson tribute Vancouver villages Referendum ruse • Mystic muse

100% CANADIAN SINCE 1982 • ISSUE 215 • JUNE 2009 • FREE

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www.commonground.ca Photo: Gerry Dieter Design: J. Roberts & P. Bromley

fEATURES Thank you Arthur Erickson ............................................ 5 Bruce Bingham Healthcare thrives on conflict ...................................... 6 Alan Cassels Welcome to village Vancouver ................................... 10 Kathie Wallace and Ross Moster Giving peace a chance ................................................. 12 Donald Tarlton

Publisher & Senior Editor - Joseph Roberts Comptroller - Rajesh Chawla Managing Editor - Sonya Weir Design & Production - www.perubluesky.ca Contributors: Robert Alstead, Steve Anderson, Bruce Bingham, Peter Sircom Bromley, Alan Cassels, Guy Dauncey, Adrien Dilon, Ishi Dinim, Carolyn Herriot, Vesanto Melina, Ross Moster, Geoff Olson, Gwen Randall-Young, David Suzuki, Donald Tarlton, Eckhart Tolle, Andrew Vidich, Kathie Wallace Sales - Head office 604-733-2215 toll-free 1-800-365-8897 Contact Common Ground: Phone: 604-733-2215 Fax: 604-733-4415 Advertising: admin@commonground.ca Editorial: editor@commonground.ca Common Ground Publishing Corp. 204-4381 Fraser St. Vancouver, BC V5V 4G4 Canada 100% owned and operated by Canadians. Published 12 times a year in Canada. Publications Mail Agreement No. 40011171 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to Circulation Dept. 204-4381 Fraser St. Vancouver, BC V5V 4G4 ISSN No. 0824-0698 Copies printed: 70,000 Over 250,000 readers per issue Survey shows 3 to 4 readers/copy. Annual subscription is $60 (US$50) for one year (12 issues). Single issues are $6 (specify issue #). Payable by cheque, Visa, MasterCard, Interac or money order. Printed on recycled paper with vegetable inks.All contents copyrighted. Written permission from the publisher is required to reproduce, quote, reprint, or copy any material from Common Ground. Opinions and views expressed in the articles do not necessarily reflect those of the publishers or advertisers. Common Ground Publishing Corp. neither endorses nor assumes any liability for any and all products or services advertised or within editorial content. Furthermore, health-related content is not intended as medical advice and in no way excludes the necessity of an opinion from a health professional. Advertisers are solely responsible for their claims.

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JUNE 2009

The muse and the third man ........................................ 16 Geoff Olson Meditation as healing technology ............................. 18 Dr. Andrew Vidich First Past The Post mortem .......................................... 22 Peter Sircom Bromley

SPIRITUALITY Presence is the key ....................................................... 14 POWER OF NOW Eckhart Tolle Global or ego crisis? ..................................................... 15 UNIVERSE WITHIN Gwen Randall-Young ENVIRONMENT Climate solution fest ..................................................... 20 EARTHFUTURE Guy Dauncey US sets high standards ................................................. 21 SCIENCE MATTERS David Suzuki CULTURE Countdown to Copenhagen.......................................... 31 FILMS WORTH WATCHING Robert Alstead Canada needs an innovation agenda......................... 31 INDEPENDENT MEDIA Steve Anderson

IN EVERY ISSUE HEALTH Fast food for health.......................................................... 9 NUTRISPEAK Vesanto Melina

RESOURCE DIRECTORY ................................................ 23

ORGANICS Get priorities straight.................................................... 13 ON THE GARDEN PATH Carolyn Herriot

ON TRACK ZODIAC ........................................................ 34

DATEBOOK ...................................................................... 32 CLASSIFIED ..................................................................... 33

Thank you Arthur Erickson

Arthur Charles Erickson 1924-2009

by Bruce Bingham

N MAY 20, 2009, we lost a great friend with the passing of Arthur Erickson. He will be missed not only in Vancouver, but also throughout the rest of Canada and the world village where he sailed on the high seas of life’s creative flow to bring back gifts of time, space, form and humanity. This incredible man saw always that we are never separate from nature, but that we are part of nature herself. Always the gracious diplomat with a ready laugh, wide grin and sparkle in his eye, he saw the best in each of us and when it displeased him to see the ignorant actions of those less disposed to grace, he stood his ground without concession. At all times, he was a hard, hard worker and he would never compromise his standards of excellence. He knew all was possible. He knew you could do it. He always admonished others to just try, take the next step, reach for what you know and see beyond expected limits. He knew that everyone had the same potential and with generous humility, he gave his Arthur Erickson Diamond Head area. Circa 1942. Photo by Mary White. full support to others to dream, to become and to realize their highest aspirations. The foundation for his immense success was his faminspired by nature’s spirit and grand design. He was giftacumen. Those who know, say he is the greatest Canadiily and the many dear friends he made along the way. ed as a painter with an instinctive sense of form, colour, an architect of the 20th century. He stood firmly against His father was a war hero who lost both legs at the battle texture and nature. Undeniably, the natural beauty of the worst of humanity’s inclinations. Ever ready to put of Amiens, but survived WW1 to be decorated by King Vancouver keyed him to an appreciation of the mounhis name and reputation to a worthy cause, he spoke canGeorge V at Buckingham Palace. He returned to Canada tains, forests and seas and he was encouraged by perdidly. He saw hypocrisy and deplored its fine garments. where he married Arthur’s beloved mother Moppy. The sonal friends who were cultural lions, including Lawren He worked to preserve our neighbourhoods and aesthetic family, including Arthur’s brother who is a writer, lived Harris, Jack Shadbolt, Gordon Smith and Bill Reid. values. His call to do what is right is a trait he shares with on Vancouver’s West Side. Arthur had the innate ability to connect directly to the his family members. Poppy Erickson’s strength of character, fierce determivoice and forms of Spirit’s intelligence. He saw the conArthur’s inspired architecture brought forth a new nation, self sufficiency and love instilled nections, the momentary signs, glints understanding of how we and our dwelling places must in Arthur and Don a marked self-reliand signals that connected all the dots be one with our surroundings. His design genius, includance, confidence and highly developed and made the landscape of the world ing roof gardens, works to preserve nature. He created social conscience that set them apart. whole, visceral and inspired. Nature and established the design concepts for dwelling places From a young age, they both possessed reached out to him in special and intithat are the physical stage from which the young going a sense of self-awareness. Their beloved mate ways and he never failed to grasp forward into the world today can draw connectedness, mother recognized she had two beautiful its climate and terrain. inspiration and understanding from our bond with nature, and exceptional kids and nurtured their His cottage home on Vancouver’s rather than imagining we are separate from it. aesthetic virtuosity and self-confidence. West Side, with its secluded gardens is This singular, brilliant insight – how we all reside in The boys grew up knowing they could the quintessence of Arthur. Even a pair form and nature – will serve to save us. reach for the best and achieve their of wild Mallards – there are three genThe Great Spirit did a grand job of creating Arthur; dreams, held tightly by values of family, erations of them now – felt his love and we thank you Arthur for your love and your gifts. community and the sacredness of life. appreciation of life and nature’s genius Even in today’s changing social landand have returned annually to his cotBruce Bingham is a friend of the Erickson family. scape, the Ericksons’ deep family bond tage in the urban wilderness of VancouHe has worked at the leading edge of new industries extends across three living generations. ver adding, along with the frogs, to the in BC for many years and has made significant conArthur Erickson at home They still share Sunday dinner together natural and harmonious surroundings. tributions to the protection of the environment, justice Photo by Robert Kenney and Arthur was always present unless July 15, 2007. Courtesy of the Arthur loved life and its natural and human rights. Arthur Erickson Conservancy the busy pace of his work designing beauty immensely and inspired by that www.arthurerickson.com extraordinarily beautiful buildings – for beauty, he shared his joy and happipeople to live, work and grow in – and extensive travels Design achievements ness with others. He lifted up his friends. He brought prohibited him. When he returned home to Vancouver, (partial list) out their individual greatness and inspired them to know Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC however, he always remembered to bring back gifts for and express much more of their own intelligence. He Museum of Anthropology, UBC his beloved niece, nephews and their parents – gifts from embraced happiness and extended it to others of all ranks Provincial Law Courts, Vancouver afar that were fun, exotic and beautiful. and stations of life without prejudice, whether it was lifePavillion, International Trade Fair, Tokyo As they grew up, Arthur was a constant inspiration long friends, new and younger friends or prime ministers, Canadian Chancery, Washington, D.C. to the little ones in his family. He loved their individual kings and princesses. They all received his honesty and Etisalat Tower, Dubai natures and helped direct them to seek their own rewardCalifornia Plaza, Los Angeles respect equally, dispensed with humility, good humour Waterfall Building, Vancouver ing and fulfilling lives. He taught them to ski, to draw, and wisdom. He was a gentleman. RCMP Heritage Centre, Regina observe and to play. He was a joy to them and they to Arthur was a great Canadian light to the world. He The Erickson, Vancouver him. They too went on to become creative professionals represents the best of us as a nation and as a people. He For a complete list of awards, visit: in architecture, interior design and writing. encompassed our great country’s values of social conwww.arthurerickson.com/award.html The other foundation for Arthur’s genius was rooted science, dignity for all and wide and visceral love of in the way he saw the world in all its glory and beauty, nature’s grandeur, imbued with sophisticated, cultural JUNE 2009

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Healthcare thrives on conflicts of interest Corrupt medical research only the tip of the iceberg DRUG BUST Alan Cassels

E TRUST strongly in our medical system because, metaphorically speaking, we largely don’t mix church and state. For the most part, the medical care we receive from our hospitals and doctors is supported by public funds and delivered on the basis of human goodness, charity and justice. Examples that show how strenuous we are in ensuring that commerce doesn’t taint our medical care include: • We don’t let doctors sell drugs; pharmacists do that. • We don’t let drug companies run medical schools; universities do that. • We don’t let drug manufacturers write prescribing guidelines for physicians; independent experts do that. • And we don’t let people selling drugs or medical devices write medical journal articles; academic physicians do that. Or, at least, that’s what I thought. April was a particularly hard month for rude awakenings. Cracks in the crumbling edifice between commerce and medicine were revealed and new research unveiled gross, sometimes shocking, levels of conflicts of interest in our medical system. We are finding evidence of academic doctors selling themselves to the highest bidders, medical journals allowing themselves to be prostituted by drug companies and medical schools allowing doctors in residence to be bribed with drug company trinkets. I would argue that of all the factors threatening to undermine our trust in medicine, financial conflicts of interest top the list. Don’t believe me? Then believe the data: In April, four separate research studies published in four diverse areas showed the widespread and rampant nature of conflicts of interest in medicine. One derives from the world of cancer research. One is from psychiatry. One is from medical education and the last is from the world of medical journals. As you absorb these examples, try to decide for yourself if we are doing enough as a

society to eliminate the conflicts of interest infecting medicine. What do I mean by conflict of interest? Wikipedia generally defines it as “any situation in which an individual or corporation (either private or governmental) is in a position to exploit a professional or official capacity in some way for their personal or corporate benefit.” One study from the cancer world examined the frequency and impact of conflicts of interest as they related to high-impact, published, clinical cancer research. It basically asked the question: “Are researchers who publish in cancer journals conflicted?” (For instance, do they own shares or have stock in or otherwise benefit financially from their association with a drug manufacturer or do they work for the drug company whose drug they are studying?) The reviewers looked at cancer research published in eight major journals in 2006 to see if conflicts of interest were reported and, if so, who funded the research? They also wanted to discern if there is a real association between the research funders and what the research concludes (i.e. do the industry-sponsored researchers have more positive things to say about their sponsor’s drug than the researchers not on industry’s payroll?) Their results? Out of 1,534 original oncology studies, almost a third (29 percent) of the researchers had a conflict of interest, including industry funding, yet only 17 percent declared they had received such funding. Studies paid for by industry funding were twice as likely to focus on treatments (as opposed to other aspects of cancer care) and randomized trials that assessed survival were more likely to report positive survival outcomes when there was an obvious conflict of interest. In other words, the drug is shown to “work” better if there is company money involved. The authors concluded there are indeed conflicts of interest in the clinical cancer research published in high-impact journals; often, those conflicts are not disclosed and the conflicts result in a more

positive spin being put on the results of the trial. The next example comes from the world of mental illness. A report by Boston researchers found that 90 percent of the authors of three American Psychiatric Association (APA) clinical practice guidelines in psychiatry had financial ties to companies that manufacture drugs mentioned in those guidelines. Worse yet, the authors had financial connections, including owning equity in the companies that made the recommended medications, being a consultant or corporate board member, or receiving honoraria. None of these conflicts were disclosed in the guideline. Translation: The academics who wrote the major guidelines for American physicians on treating serious mental illness – schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and major depression – were basically all funded by the drug companies. If you thought only well meaning psychiatrists, interested in the welfare of patients, provided the guidelines, you’d be wrong. The picture looks even darker when you narrow in on the conflicts of interest of the authors of the guidelines for only bipolar disorder and schizophrenia: Here, 100 percent of the authors had such conflicts. Most people would consider these findings very worrisome, including Tufts University professor Sheldon Krimsky, one of the co-authors of this report. Tufts published a 2006 study examining conflicts of interest of the creators of psychiatry’s “Bible,” the DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders). In a telephone interview with Krimsky from his office in Boston, he told me we should be worried about conflicts of

the first place. At the very least, groups like the APA should admit they’ve got a huge potential PR liability on their hands, and if they don’t prevent drug companies from putting their own people on guideline committees, the APA shouldn’t be surprised when our doctors scorn or ignore their guidance. What about smaller things than prescribing guidelines? What about trinkets – do they influence what our physicians think about drug companies? A recent study conducted in two medical schools in the US found that exposure to even small pharmaceutical items affected a doctor’s treatment preferences. You might find this hard to believe. Most physicians I know scorn the idea that they could be “bought” with trinkets. (We’re talking drug company pens, free drug samples and other logo-laden paraphernalia.) Most physicians are adamant that these small, promotional items are unlikely to influence prescribing behaviour. Yet, in this study, the researchers measured whether exposure to these items result in doctors looking more favourably on drug companies and whether or not the medical schools with more restrictive policies towards pharmaceutical marketing produce doctors with different attitudes. Researchers conducted a randomized, controlled experiment with more than 300 senior level medical stu-

We are finding evidence of academic doctors selling themselves to the highest bidders, medical journals allowing themselves to be prostituted by drug companies and medical schools allowing doctors in residence to be bribed with drug company trinkets.

interest because they can lead to a “distortion of the scientific record” and that industry-funded activities may lead to an “interpretation of the science in a direction that may not be defensible.” While he’d like to see these guidelines do a much better job of disclosing conflicts of interests among the authors, such disclosure is only an intermediate step towards erecting a solid firewall between drug companies and guidelines for physicians. “The innovators must be separate from the evaluators,” he notes. That’s right, a separation of church and state. No doubt guideline committees, such as those sponsored by the APA, need to come clean about their financial conflicts, but they must go further to avoid them in

dents at two US medical schools. One of the schools (University of Miami) allowed the students to be exposed to small, branded promotional items for the cholesterol-lowering drug Lipitor (atorvastatin). The control group was comprised of students at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine where restrictive policies are in place to limit pharmaceutical marketing. What did they find? The Miami students exposed to the Lipitor swag were obviously more enamoured with the drug compared to the control group in Pennsylvania. On a “skepticism” scale, the Miami students held more favourable attitudes toward pharmaceutical marketing compared with the other group of

students where the opposite effect was observed. Basically, those students not marinating in drug company promotion were less swayed by promotional items related to the drug. The authors concluded “subtle exposure to small, pharmaceutical, promotional items influences implicit attitudes toward marketed products among medical students.” A study published in April by Sergio Sismondo at Queens University in Kingston looked at the relationship between drug companies and medical journals and asked, “Are medical researchers and medical journals too close to the pharmaceutical industry for comfort – or Alan Cassels is patient safety?” We’ve all heard a drug policy of the phenomeresearcher at non of “ghostwriting” where big, the University of important names Victoria and author in medical acaof The ABCs of demia are asked to put their names to Disease Mongering papers written by others (often drug company hacks). But Sismondo pushes the concept a bit further referring to the “ghost management” of pharmaceutical research and publication where cradle-tograve medical publishing is “managed” every step of the way by pharma funders. He notes there has always been a problem with plagiarism and the misallocation of credit (like the prof who puts his own name on the hard work of his graduate students), but those scenarios are only the tip of the iceberg. A more serious problem in medical publishing is the pharmaceutical industry using “willing participants” in the form of researchers seeking fame, glory and money associated with huge, multimillion-dollar studies. These people, known in the marketing world as KOLs (Key Opinion Leaders), are luminaries who put their names to the body of academic published research and serve as speakers and de facto promoters of the company’s products. They put their names to studies that are published according to the objectives of the funders (usually the drug companies). The published studies are then reprinted and distributed to the offices of physicians and anyone else who influences drug formularies. As Sismondo says, “Those articles may look like independent confirmation of the reps’ pitches [and] plagiarizing KOLs lend their good names to the pitches.” If you were to ask me if conflicts of interest are a problem in medicine, I’d say, “Ask the data and then decide for yourself.” Alan Cassels is the co-author of the bestselling Selling Sickness. He does not work for the pharmaceutical industry.

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Fast food for health NUTRISPEAK Vesanto Melina MS, RD

CHOOL’S out (or will be soon) and bathing suit time is here. Who wants to be indoors cooking? Not me. Probably not you. Fast food may have a bad name, but the truth is that healthy eating can be quick and tasty. Here are a few food ideas that will appeal to all ages and which are simple for anyone to prepare. Burgers Stock the freezer with several types of veggie burger. Serve them on a wholewheat roll, accompanied with relish, tomatoes, barbecue sauce, tomatoes, pickles and lettuce. Taco salad Toss together greens, such as chopped romaine or other lettuce; chopped tomato; chopped red, white or green onion; rinsed, canned black beans; defrosted corn; and some cubes of avocado. Dress the salad with a little olive oil and lime or lemon juice. Serve with a handful of tortilla chips. Nori rolls and edamame Supermarkets stock a variety of nori rolls (including vegetarian) and edamame (baby soybeans, usually marinated) in their deli sections. These are also available as takeout items from Japanese restaurants. The combination makes an excellent grab-and-go dinner or fare for the beach. Orange banana whirl For a refreshing energy booster, place a banana and one and two-third cups of orange juice in a blender and process until smooth and creamy. If you’d like, include a touch of vanilla and use calcium-fortified juice. Five-day salad Makes 20 cups Would you or your family members eat more salad if it were ready-made? A good trick is to assemble a huge salad each week. It’s then ready when you are. Removing excess moisture makes the salad last longer, so use a salad spinner or shake or pat the lettuce leaves dry. Mix it in a large container, such as a metal bowl with a 14-inch diameter. Store in one or two large, well-sealed containers (such as Tupperware) and it will keep for four or five days. For freshness, do not include red pepper in your stored salad; add it just before serving. Serve the salad with a favourite dressing. 5 large leaves kale 5 large leaves romaine lettuce

5 leaves Napa (Chinese) cabbage 1/4 head red cabbage 1 large stalk broccoli 1/2 small head cauliflower 3 - 4 carrots 1 sweet red pepper (optional) Remove stem from kale and chop matchstick thin. Tear or cut lettuce into bite-size pieces. Cut Napa cabbage leaves in half lengthwise and slice into 1/4-inch strips. Slice red cabbage into thin slices. Cut broccoli and cauliflower into bite-size florets. Broccoli stems may be peeled and diced. Slice carrots and cut red pepper into 1/4-inch strips. Toss all in bowl. Nutritional analysis per two-cup serving: Calories: 47. Protein: 3 g. Carbohydrate: 10 g. Fat: 0.4 g. Dietary Fibre: 3 g. Sodium: 33 mg. Percent calories from: Protein: 21%. Fat: 7%. Carbohydrate: 72%. Red lentil soup Makes about eight cups This soup is simple and scrumptious. Red lentils take far less time to cook than green, grey or brown lentils and provide an extremely low-fat source of protein. A serving provides about as much protein as a two and a half ounce burger patty or chicken leg. Instead of cumin, you might like to season the soup to taste with Patak’s Mild Curry Paste, which is available at regular supermarkets and Asian stores. 7 cups water 2 1/2 cups dried red lentils 1 large onion, finely chopped 2 to 4 Tbsp. lemon juice 1 tsp. ground cumin Salt and pepper Combine water, lentils and onion in a large pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, partially cover and simmer until the lentils have disintegrated, about 30 to 60 minutes. Stir in the lemon juice, cumin (or Patak’s Curry Paste), salt and pepper. Nutritional analysis per cup: Calories: 199. Protein: 14 g. Carbohydrate: 36 g. Fat: 0.1 g. Dietary fibre: 9 g. Sodium: 26 mg. Percent calories from: Protein: 28%. Fat: 0%. Carbohydrate: 72%. Vesanto Melina is a dietitian and author of the following nutrition classics: Becoming Vegetarian, the Food Allergy Survival Guide, Becoming Vegan and the Raw Food Revolution Diet. Recipes here are from Raising Vegetarian Children. Vesanto is based in Langley, BC. 604-882-6782, www.nutrispeak.com

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Village Vancouver

by Kathie Wallace and Ross Moster

E ARE a collaborative of community-minded people and neighbours in Vancouver and the Lower Mainland who delight in imagining the possibilities for a just, ecologically sustainable and resilient Vancouver and beyond. Every month, we explore initiatives for sustainable community that are simple, free or low cost, time saving and easily replicable. Get to know us at www.villagevancouver.ca If you are interested in joining or creating a village in your neighbourhood, contact Ross Moster at rmoster@flash.net. Neighbourhood villages We call what we do “village building.” When neighbours start talking to one another, the simple act of connecting leads to all sorts of good things. Artifi-

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ver.ca/engsvcs/filmandevents/events/ blockparty/ Drop-in spaghetti nights Imagine announcing to your neighbours that you’re going to cook a big pot of spaghetti, provide some salad and garlic bread and they are welcome to join you. Then imagine your neighbours appreciated your gesture so much they decide to do the same thing on another night. Soon, you have a number of places to eat all over the neighbourhood and you’re saving time and sharing good food and conversation with interesting people.

The Vancouver gardening challenge By the end of 2009, let’s have harvest celebrations in every neighbourhood in Vancouver. These could be the result of creating neighbourhood villages. The first goal is to plant a garden now. Here’s a simple way to start a garden: 1) Compost, trench, mound, seed and mulch. 2) Someone knocks on doors until he finds people to share their yard. Someone volunteers to collect compost. 3) Each neighbourhood could dedicate one quarter of its garden to a mono crop for sharing with the larger community. 4) Harvest celebration this fall! From Kathie Wallace, Marpole. Fork in the Road: cultivating food and community Last October, the Fork gathering helped participants take concrete steps around the topic: “What would happen if we made a conscious effort to create local food economies in our neighbourhoods photos: Peter Sircom Bromley

Welcome to

Garden in our own backyards Village Vancouver hosts neighbourhood-based gardening workshops with Roberts Creek’s Sustainable Living Arts School founder Robin Wheeler (www. ediblelandscapes.ca). Also see the Sustainable Living Arts School in Vancouver: www.slas.ca Visit www.villagevancouver. ca for upcoming learning parties in East Hastings, Main St., Riley Park, Fraser, Kits, Downtown, Dunbar, North Van and Coquitlam. New hosts are always welcome. Neighbourhood food networking There are hundreds of things we can do in our neighbourhoods around food that promote community based food systems, including canning parties, co-op kitchens, tea stations, sharing compost, pocket farmers/gardeners markets, seed/ plant swaps, community kitchens, backyard chickens, honouring elder gardeners, permaculture, urban micro-farming, community gardens/fruit orchards, sidewalk meals, beekeeping, berry picking, neighbourhood co-op freezers, and more. We look forward to hearing about what your neighbourhood is doing. Broccoli promenades Community develops around food. A “Broccoli Promenade” transforms streets into a food garden, by using road closures to reconnect food growing to our home kitchens. The garden promenades bring neighbours together, feeding both the gardeners and their neighbours. For more information on creating a Broccoli Promenade, contact d.lafontaine@shaw. ca in Kitsilano.

and communities?” Fork participants continue to get together for monthly potlucks. The next Fork in the Road takes place at Langara’s Summer School on Building Community, June 15-16. For details, contact Leslie Kemp or Village Vancouver. Langara’s Summer School on Building Community Langara’s Summer School on Building Community runs June 15-25. Enjoy workshops, films, community tours, storytelling and more at this festival of learning. Village Vancouver also hosts a number of programs. For information about VV programming, visit our website or contact Ross. For information about the Langara Summer School, contact Leslie Kemp at 604-323-5981, lkemp@langara.bc.ca or visit www.langara.bc.ca/cs Details on future topics: www.villagevancouver.ca

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UPCOMING SEMINARS: UPCOMING SEMINARS

TORONTO, ONTARIO

Jun 19 - 22, 2009 • Levels 1 & 2 TORONTO Jun 19-22, 2009

VANCOUVER, Levels 1 & 2 BC

Sept 11-14, 2009 • Levels 1 & 2

OtherVANCOUVER cities in 2009:

Sept 11-14, 2009 LevelsMay 1 &16-18 2 San Francisco, Level 3 with special guest Dr. Other Hector Garcia cities in 2009:

Seattle, May 29-June 1 June 2 LosCertification Angeles Practitioner's

June 12-15 • Levels 1 & 2

Los Angeles, June 12-15 Levels 1 &Minneapolis 2

July 10-13 • Levels 1 & 2

Minneapolis, July 10-13 Levels 1 & 2

Denver July 24-27 • Levels 1 & 2 Denver, July 24-27 Levels 1 & 2 Diego, Aug 21-24 SanSan Diego, Aug 21-24 Level 3, Aug Level 3, Aug 26-27 26-27 JUNE 2009

. 11

Giving peace a chance

ROM THE very first moment John and I saw each other, we knew something was about to happen – something big. We just didn’t know how big. John said about our meeting: “It was bigger than both of us.” That was the feeling we both had. When John and I sang Give Peace A Chance from our bed-In in Montreal, we had no idea the song would become an anthem not only for our time, but for generations to come.

It went around the world and made other songwriters realize that you can convey political messages with songs. Millions of people got together and sang the song in different parts of the world at different times. The song connected us and made us realize that we were a power strong enough to change the world. Little did we know that that’s when we, John and I, really made our beds for life. I still remember the beautiful full moon that John and I kept looking at from the bed, after everybody went home. Did anybody think that a man and a woman, a man from Liverpool and a woman from Tokyo, would do something crazy like that together to change the world? Maybe it was written already on a stone on the moon or something. At the time, we were laughed at and put down, in a major way, by the whole world. Now all of us are standing at the threshold of a beautiful new age that we worked hard for. It’s not in our hands yet, but we know we will make it happen. Let’s make the best of it and have fun. I think John would have been very pleased too. Imagine peace War is over, if you want it. I love you! Yoko, NYC 2009 12 .

JUNE 2009

by Donald Tarlton concert promoter, Montreal

EOPLE GOT into the bed-in for dozens of reasons. I got in because I was a concert promoter and I knew all the rock writers. One of them, Dean Jones of the Montreal Star, called me up and said, “You’re not going to believe what’s going down. John Lennon is at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel. Come on down! Now!”

I said, “Well, there must be a million people there, I’ll never get in.” She said: “No, everything’s fine. Your name’s been left at the door.” It indeed was and I got up to the 17th floor. I couldn’t believe it. I remember coming in the door, and Dean, you know, introduced me to John and Yoko as “our local concert impresario.” I was a little timid about the whole thing for the first while, because it seemed like a bit of an intrusion, like I really shouldn’t be there. It was a pretty spectacular situation and I looked around and said to myself, “This is surreal. This is some moment.” I closed my eyes and brought up the image of the debonair man in the suit who had made the girls scream on the Ed Sullivan Show, the man

Recorded June 1st, 1969 40th Anniversary I had first seen on stage at the Montreal Forum five years earlier. And I opened my eyes and there he is, lying in a bed in front of me, the same man, but everything about him is different. He’s not singing songs; instead, he and his wife are patiently putting out one message, interview after interview. They stayed on target: “We’re killing the life on this planet, and the responsibility to stop it lies in each and every one of us. Inaction is not an option.” Most of the time I understand we are all such little insignificant beings in the universe. But there was something much bigger than our normal life happening in that room. Being there that night gave you a feeling that you were in a special place, where people who the times had singled out were saying things that needed to be said. It was just the luck of the draw that I ended up on the recording of Give Peace a Chance. There’s been a lot of wonderful things that I’ve participated in over 40-odd years of working with some of the biggest stars in the world, but nothing will ever rival that moment. How could it? I saw some of the writing process behind the song, saw how focused it was. They thought, “Why fool around with more words than necessary here? We’ve got a message; give them the message.” I mean, it’s the simplest song in the world. When I was listening to it in the playbacks, I said, “How can they ever release this? It’s not a song, it’s just a chant.” But boy, was I wrong. Anyone who’s been in a studio recording session knows there’s nothing more boring than sitting for three weeks doing 2,700 takes on two lines. But this recording was different. I mean, everyone had an instrument of some sort. The Hare Krishna people were chanting and the people in the room passed around a tambourine, but most of it was hand-clapping, or you grabbed something – a couple of people had books, banging them together like cymbals. People were kicking the open sliding door to the next room for that big bass beat. Everything was really cooking. It was a very spiritual moment. And they just kept going and going; it went on and on, take after take, until John was satisfied. It will never go down as one of his greatest songs, but it’ll go down as the greatest message a song ever gave the world – a message that has been understood and chanted by crowds all around the world. Why is the song still relevant? Well, can you think of a more relevant message in today’s world? Turn on your television sets, listen to your radio. Watch what’s happening around this world. Be horrified. Recoil. Ask yourself how this could have gone so wrong. So if you ask me if the message “give peace a chance” is relevant, it matters more today than it did when John and Yoko sent the original message to the world. We have to say to ourselves: It was a great message then. It could be a greater message today. It’s simple: Think of peace and of peace only. Some nations have an atomic bomb; some nations have all the armaments in the world. John Lennon had his guitar, his voice, his soul and his spirit. We need more like him. Excerpted from Give Peace a Chance: John & Yoko’s Bed-In for Peace compiled by Joan Athey. Photography by Gerry Deiter. Edited by Paul McGrath. (John Wiley & Sons Canada Ltd.) Joan Athey and Gerry Deiter (1934-2005)

Get priorities straight ON THE GARDEN PATH Carolyn Herriot

Well, maybe it is just the time of year, or maybe it’s the time of man, I don’t know who l am, but you know life is for learning. We are stardust. We are golden. And we’ve got to get ourselves back to the garden. – from Woodstock by Joni Mitchell

T’S JUNE 2009 and the lyrics above express exactly the way I see things right now; it’s both the time of man and the time of year and we’ve definitely got to get ourselves back to the garden. What’s playing out around the planet is an amazing lead-up to a scenario that will force us to get our priorities straight. The good news is that, as the song implies, it simply involves us going back to the garden to learn who we really are. It saddens my heart to think we have allowed children to forget where food comes from and that people believe that a decent living cannot be made from the land. It’s hard to fathom that many people working to feed the world cannot feed themselves because the food they grow is for processing and export. How did agriculture come to be the source of so much negative human impact on the global environment? How could we have allowed soil to degrade to the point where we only have another 50 years’ worth of food production from soils on this planet? Something has to change and getting people back to the land, growing their own food in a sustainable way, is a good way to start. Lately, I’ve been wandering through my garden filled with joy at the sight of all the blossoms that will soon turn into sun-ripened fruit – cherries, apricots, plums, apples and pears; gratefully, the fig trees survived the harsh winter and are now leafing out. The “berry walk” is full of the promise of loganberries, gooseberries, raspberries, strawberries

ORGANICS and red and blackcurrants to come. The arbour will soon drip with colourful and delicious grapes, kiwis, thornless blackberries, nectar berries, Marionberries and Tayberries. I’ve also been busy transplanting long rows of peas, lettuces, leeks and onions, together with kales, chards, spinach and salad greens – arugula, coriander, chicory and cresses. In the greenhouse the “Heat Lovers” tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, beans, amaranth, squash and basil are waiting for it to warm up before being planted out into the garden. Packets of parsnips, beets, celeriac, parsley, dill and turnips and radishes have been ripped open and tidy rows have been seeded in between the lettuces. Tip: Hoe a shallow furrow and line it with a mix of 50 percent screened compost and 50 percent coarse, washed sand before broadcasting the seeds of root vegetables. This helps germination and aids growth in heavier clay soils. My “Garden of Eden” is a beautiful masterpiece of nature’s sheer perfection. I am constantly filled with joy at its pure beauty and harmony, and I am filled with gratitude daily for the generous living I am able to make from it by teaching, saving seeds and selling edible plants to my neighbours. I am especially filled with appreciation for the fact that whenever I am hungry, I can just step outside my door to find fresh food, which is alive and healthy and keeps me connected to nature and a wondrous lifestyle. Carolyn Herriot is author of A Year on the Garden Path, a 52-Week Organic Gardening Guide. She grows “Seeds of Victoria” at the Garden Path Centre, where she teaches “The Zero Mile Diet - Twelve Steps to Sustainable Homegrown Food Production” and “Growing an Edible Plant Business.” http://www. earthfuture.com/gardenpath

The future of things to come? Consider this fact; it may get you growing an edible garden even faster: California’s heavily irrigated Central Valley, the site of the majority of food production in the state, is currently locked in a three-year drought, with no end in sight. Farmers have been left with dusty fields and dying trees. Food production in the Central Valley has also put so much pressure on the Delta estuary – the source of fresh water for irrigation – that there has been a collapse of the coastal ecosystem where the estuary drains out to sea. In the US, California produces the following percentages of the country’s total: Artichokes: 99 percent. Asparagus: 50 percent. Carrots: 60 percent. Cauliflower: 86 percent. Broccoli: 93 percent. Celery: 95 percent. Lettuce: 90 percent. Spinach: 83 percent. Tomatoes: 30 percent (95 percent of those for processing). Lemons: 86 percent. Oranges: 25 percent.

JUNE 2009

. 13

Full Moon Festivals of Spring The three Full Moon Festivals of Spring – Easter (Rebirth), Wesak, and the Festival of Humanity – present an opportunity to experience potently the Aquarian energies of synthesis which are slowly beginning to influence our lives.

Presence is the key

www.TaraCanada.org

June 7 @ 3 pm YWCA Hotel 733 Beatty CANFOR Room

This month please attend our free presentation about the festival of Humanity, also known as the festival of Goodwill. Then participate in a Transmission Meditation: a simple, yet potent form of group meditation for world service. sponsored by Tara Canada – donations gratefully accepted

Free video presentation followed by discussion

For more titles and to order, go to

THE POWER OF NOW Eckhart Tolle

OBODY CHOOSES dysfunction, conﬂict, pain. Nobody chooses insanity. They happen because there is not enough presence in you to dissolve the past, not enough light to dispel the darkness. You are not fully here. You have not quite woken up yet. In the meantime, the conditioned mind is running your life. Similarly, if you are one of the many people who have an issue with their parents, if you still harbour resentment about something they did or did not do, then you still believe that they had a choice – that they could have acted

unconscious state. What you say about choice also applies to forgiveness, I suppose. You need to be fully conscious and surrender before you can forgive. “Forgiveness” is a term that has been in use for 2,000 years, but most people have a very limited view of what it means. You cannot truly forgive yourself or others as long as you derive your sense of self from the past. Only through accessing the power of the Now, which is your own power, can there be true forgiveness. This renders the past powerless and you

When you surrender to what is and so become fully present, the past ceases to have any power. You do not need it anymore. Presence is the key. The Now is the key.

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differently. It always looks as if people had a choice, but that is an illusion. As long as your mind with its conditioned patterns runs your life, as long as you are your mind, what choice do you have? None. You are not even there. The mind-identiﬁed state is severely dysfunctional. It is a form of insanity. Almost everyone is suffering from this illness in varying degrees. The moment you realize this, there can be no more resentment. How can you resent someone’s illness? The only appropriate response is compassion.

realize deeply that nothing you ever did or that was ever done to you could touch, even in the slightest, the radiant essence of who you are. The whole concept of forgiveness then becomes unnecessary.

So that means nobody is responsible for what they do? I don’t like that idea. If you are run by your mind, although you have no choice, you will still suffer the consequences of your unconsciousness and you will create further suffering. You will bear the burden of fear, conﬂict, problems and pain. The suffering thus created will eventually force you out of your

How will I know when I have surrendered? When you no longer need to ask the question.

And how do I get to that point of realization? When you surrender to what is and so become fully present, the past ceases to have any power. You do not need it anymore. Presence is the key. The Now is the key.

Editor’s Note from Joseph Roberts This column is the final monthly instalment of Eckhart’s first book The Power of Now. It has been a joy to carry Eckhart Tolle’s message to our ¼ million readers in print, and others via commongound.ca. The Power of Now, Eckhart’s first book, published originally by Namaste Publishing, deservingly became a bestseller and inspirational companion for readers, including me. Eckhart visited my office when Common Ground was on Broadway where we would chat and meditate. I was fortunate to be the first person to review The Power of Now, and Common Ground’s review was used to get other media attention, including Harpo Productions, Opera’s company. I appreciated Eckhart Tolle’s work now as I did then. Common Ground looks forward to offering more inspiration to you, our loyal and precious readers. Now its time for you to tell us what inspires you. Thank you. editor@commonground.ca.

Global or ego crisis? UNIVERSE WITHIN Gwen Randall-Young

SPIRITUALITY If you are distressed by anything external, the pain is not due to the thing itself, but to your estimate of it, and this you have the power to revoke at any moment. – Marcus Aurelius

S I WRITE this, a world struggling with economic upheaval is now facing a flu pandemic. It seems that for the past year or so, the dominant themes have been fear, loss and lack of control. What a challenge

That is all well and good until ego’s own world is threatened. Then it is a different story. Maybe we will lose our house and have to rent. Maybe we won’t be able to do all that travelling in retirement as we had planned. Maybe we won’t even be able to retire. Could ego sit and complain about these things while facing a mother whose baby is dying of starvation? This is not to say we should start giving half our income to those less fortunate, although some would be good. What it is saying is that these “difficult

These “difficult times” may be reminding us to be humble. We are blessed with richness in our lives. We are not entitled or somehow more deserving.

for ego. All of its buttons are being pushed. Here in the West, our lives have been blessed for a long time. We can take clean water for granted. Food, clothing and shelter are manageable for most. We have the luxury of playing with our food. When I read articles about exotic recipes and novel ways to prepare food, I often wonder what starving people in Third World countries would make of them. We have access to medical care, immunization and anti-viral drugs. We need not fear for our families the way other people do in countries that are at war or challenged by warring forces within. So it is natural that we feel we have a fair bit of control over our lives. Then, suddenly, even though we invested wisely and took good care of our health, due to forces beyond our control, our financial future suddenly looks significantly different than we had planned and a potentially life threatening virus is making its way around the world. All of this serves to awaken us to how much we take for granted and to our sense of entitlement. As difficult as things might become for us, it will still be nothing compared with the suffering of the people in underdeveloped or warring countries. It is far too easy to think of these people as belonging to another world – a world that is far away and disconnected from ours. Poverty and illness is the misfortune of their birth. We, on the other hand, are lucky. Or so we like to think. Ego likes to keep us separate like that.

times” may be reminding us to be humble. We are blessed with richness in our lives. We are not entitled or somehow more deserving. We need to be thankful and full of gratitude when times are good, and determined, strong and resilient when they are not. I recently watched the movie Doctor Zhivago again after many years. It moved me then and it moves me now. Life was painful and full of struggle, fear and uncertainty. At one point, Lara says to Yuri, “This is a terrible time to be living.” Yuri responds, “Well, if our days are numbered, we must make the most of them.” Rather than focusing on all that was wrong, he chose to make something good of what little they had. As well as focusing on all that is good in our lives, this may also be a time to reach out and offer help and support to those struggling around us. Ego tends to get so wrapped up in its own drama that it can forget that others are suffering too, maybe even more than we are. Ironically, it seems that in times of tragedy or great suffering, the highest and best of the human spirit emerges. Perhaps these difficult times are here to serve us in our ongoing evolution.

Vision Fast Retreat—An Extraordinary Journey to Self in the BC Wilderness

Explore the possibilities of a life previously unimagined through the vision fast—a ceremony that brings guidance and healing through a 3-day solo and sacred ritual in wild nature—a rite of renewal to strengthen connections to yourself, your people, the Earth, and the sacred dimension in your life. Dates July 5-11, 2009 Cost $800–1200 sliding scale place Monkey Valley Retreat Centre, Merritt www.monkeyvalleyretreat.com info Karen, 604.251.6337 kyrempel@gmail.com

Kim Ashley is a certified life coach and PhD candidate in east-west psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies, specializing in nature and imagination. She trained as a vision fast guide at the School of Lost Borders. Karen Rempel holds a master’s degree in ecopsychology from Naropa University, and trained as a vision fast guide at the School of Lost Borders. She is a Reiki master, registered yoga teacher, and member of the Wilderness Guides Council.

SHINE

Didjeridu Master

A dreamtime journey into ancient and mystical soundscapes with Didjeridu Master - Shine. A sharing of Indigenous wisdom, songlines & music that is the medicine of the times. June 21, 7:30 pm Trinity Unity Church 1805 Larch, Kitsilano $20 @ Banyen Books

Contact Shine 604-251-5144 shine_like_thesun@hotmail.com www.myspace/shinedidjeridu

Gwen Randall-Young is a psychotherapist in private practice and author of Growing Into Soul: The Next Step in Human Evolution. For more articles, permission to reprint and information about her books and “Deep Powerful Change” personal growth/hypnosis CDs, visit www.gwen.ca JUNE 2009

. 15

Muse and the Third Man

The

by Geoff Olson

Survivors of near-death experiences attest to a mysterious helping presence. Is it mysticism or science?

N THE LATE seventh century BC, the Greek poet Hesiod was tending his flock of sheep on the slopes of Helicon, a mountain in central Greece when the Muses came upon him. They “breathed into me a divine voice,” he wrote in his Theogony, and taught him a glorious song. “They have made Helicon, the great, God-haunted mountain, their domain.” To some classicists, Hesiod’s words were more than stylistic devices – he was describing what, to him, was a real experience. The Muses, the Greek gods of arts and literature, were said to have the power to “inspire” – a word meaning, literally, “a God within.” In today’s world, the Muses have been downsized to “the muse,” a wan, poetic expression for creative inspiration. It’s now just a turn of phrase, a cliché, although some artists and writers have confessed to having the spooky feeling that they are the vessels, rather than the executors, of their best work. However, there is another muse-like phenomenon that persists into the modern age, although it’s connected more to issues of survival than self-expression. Pilots, mountaineers and “extreme athletes” are said to have encountered this mysterious presence in moments of great danger or at the brink of death. The presence, often perceived of as a voice, offers assurance and also counsels persistence in the face of overwhelming odds. In her 2008 book Explorers of the Infinite, British Columbian author Maria Coffey investigated what she refers to as “the secret spiritual lives” of extreme 16 .

JUNE 2009

athletes and adventurers. “All the extreme adventurers in my book spoke of a ‘sixth sense’ that comes from being keenly attuned to the environment they are moving through,” she writes. A legendary account of spectral guidance was supplied by Ernest Shackleton, after his 1914-1917 Endurance Expedition across Antarctica to the South Pole. The problems began when Shackleton’s ship became trapped in pack ice, only a few days after the first sighting of the continent of Antarctica. The ship drifted with the floe for several days and then sat frozen in place throughout the dark Antarctic winter. Shackleton ordered his men to abandon the ship. A harrowing encounter with the elements ended with a 36-hour trek, with only a stretch of rope and ice axe to assist them. It was an incredible feat of endurance, one that amazes mountaineers to this day, Coffey notes. “I know that during that long and racking march,” Shackleton wrote, “it seemed to me often that we were four, not three.” Shackleton had the unmistakable sense of being guided by an unseen presence. His story supplied the inspiration for a passage from T.S. Eliot’s The Waste Land: Who is the third who walks always beside you? When I count, there are only you and I together But when I look ahead up the white road There is always another one walking beside you Gliding wrapt in a brown mantle, hooded I do not know whether a man or a woman – But who is that on the other side of you?

Hence the term, the “Third Man factor,” after Eliot’s poem. In his 2009 book of the same name, author John Geiger says he’s tracked down 110 stories of people in states of extreme danger, or near death, who felt they received guidance from a sensed presence, including a survivor of the World Trade Centre collapse, who received instruction from a spectral voice on how to escape with his life intact. Geiger writes of climber James Sevigny, who experienced the phenomenon after an avalanche swept him a distance of 600 feet and left him with a broken back, scapula and arm and shattered facial bones. He awoke to find his climbing companion dead beside him, at which point he lost hope and decided to join him. But a presence encouraged him to persevere and offered him help. Whatever it was, this presence accompanied him all the way to the base camp, where he received medical attention. While researching her book, Coffey uncovered a similar pattern of stories. She learned that many extreme athletes have experienced life-changing spiritual experiences along with the difficulty of sharing them with friends and family. Yet surprisingly, a few of the people profiled in her book welcomed these extreme states of mind and have even since put themselves in mortal danger to access them again. In her book, Coffey tells of an experienced ice climber, Clay Hunting, whose climbing companion fell 150 feet, along with tons of ice. With his companion seriously injured, Hunting had to hike many miles through

a canyon for help. “The strangest thing was when I was hiking out I had a small, blue light in front of me the whole time. It wasn’t my headlamp. It was a blue light. It led me out. I don’t know what it was but there was no way I could have got out as fast as I did without its help. Every so often, I would stop and turn off my headlight and look for that blue light. It might be a bit higher up or lower, or to the left or right and I would follow it.” Without the blue light to guide him, Hunting is sure his friend would have died. Coffey believes these bizarre experiences are often mediated through three conditions: fear, suffering and focus. Fear is something all extreme athletes must confront, at one time or another. Suffering comes with the territory. Focus means prolonged attention on a single task. It’s no accident that desert-bound mystics, shamans in training and yuppies on vision quests have employed some or all of these factors to access obscure corners of the soul. The act of focus, which sweeps away mundane, day-to-day thoughts, seems to anchor the seeker in the present, while suffering and fear alter one’s physiological and neurochemical states. This combination of psychic conditions appears to open a window into archetypal realms of experience. In the 22nd hour of his trans-Atlantic flight, fighting to stay awake, Charles Lindbergh suddenly perceived spectral forms in the cabin that encouraged him to stay awake, offering navigation help. They stayed with him until he reached the Irish coast, Lindbergh claimed. He later wrote of his experience: “The fuselage behind me becomes filled with ghostly presences; vaguely outlined forms, transparent, moving, riding weightless with me in the plane. I feel no surprise at their coming. There’s no suddenness to their appearance. Without turning my head, I can see them as clearly as though in my normal vision. These visions were emanations from the experience of ages, inhabitants of a universe closed to mortal men.” Of course, it may not be such a surprise to see strange things after 22 hours without sleep. Scientists have long known that sleep deprivation can crowbar the dreaming mind into waking consciousness. Pilot Dick Rutan completed the first nonstop flight around the world in 1986. In 1979, during an extended flight in an experimental plane, an elf appeared on one of the wings. The elf communicated that Rutan had fallen asleep and crashed into a mountain, and could now relax. A spacecraft with “little gray men” pulled alongside, while airplanes in his wake were looping about in dogfights. All this was accompanied by “beautiful, loud organ music.” “I don’t believe in any spiritual crap,” Rutan told Coffey. But he did note that he had been in the air for the same length of time as Charles Lindbergh on his epic voyage. In Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, a stressed-out Ebenezer Scrooge dismisses the ghost of his former colleague, Joseph Marley, as a “piece of undigested potato.” Dickens was drawing a link between biochemistry and boundary experiences, while gently mocking his central character’s reductionism. But, of course, we’re not talking about fictional dreams; we’re talking about the experiences that happen to real people. But how “real” are their experiences, scientifically speaking? Coffey quotes climber Carlos Carsolio, a Mexican climber who told her how he was guided through a terrible storm down K2, the world’s second highest peak, with the help of the “spirits of the mountains and the ghost of a climber who had perished on its slopes.” In seeking his “moments of extended reality,” Carsolio has scaled 14 of the world’s tallest mountains without oxygen. So are we talking about hallucinations resulting

from oxygen-starved brains? Is the muse turbocharged by hypoxia? It’s no accident that “God-haunted” mountains have been implicated so often in mystical experiences, the author learned. The leaders of the three great monotheistic religions – Moses, Jesus and Mohammed – all had revelations on mountaintops. Prolonged exposure to high altitudes is linked to prefrontal lobe dysfunctions. The author speculates that the endorphins released by strenuous climbs might lower the threshold for temporal lobe epilepsy, “which might in turn evoke such experiences.” Above 18,000 feet, thought perception and function become increasingly impaired, and above 28,000 feet, hallucinations are common, according to tests conducted on Himalayan climbers by British doctors Michael Ward and Jim Milledge.

anadian neuroscientist Michael Persinger is famous for his brain studies using a modified football helmet, in which electrodes stimulate the brain’s temporal lobes. When both the right and left hemispheres are stimulated, Persinger’s subjects often report an unnerving “sense of presence.” To Persinger, these reports imply that, under certain conditions of neural excitation, the dominant hemisphere – where the sense of self and language is located – can interpret activity in the normally “quiet” hemisphere as the presence of another self. (In right-handed people, the left hemisphere is dominant; the opposite is true for lefthanded people.) Persinger’s studies give some indirect support to the ideas of Princeton psychologist Julian Jaynes. In 1977,

versus spiritual interpretation of such altered states of consciousness, or even if the two are mutually exclusive. She cites British scientist Rupert Sheldrake and his suggestion that memories can exist outside the nervous system in a “morphic field” of extended consciousness. In this view, the brain is the hardware that accesses a non-local software within the morphic field, and would account for psychic experiences in which people access information they couldn’t otherwise know. During a recent appearance in North Vancouver, I asked Coffey if the people profiled in her book could make a distinction between a straightforward hallucination and visionary experiences of greater spiritual authority. “A lot of scientists I talked to argued it’s all hypoxia, and maybe it is,” she responded, adding that we should pay attention to what the experiencers themselves think. For example, Carsolio knew the exact moment that his climbing partner had died on another part of the mountain and felt her spirit guide him to safety. “For him, it’s not just about lack of oxygen, it’s that zone between life and death, when you’re very, very close to death; the magical moment when he could break through into something else, where he felt he could access some other level of consciousness and speak with the dead,” Coffee writes. Coffey has very good reason to doubt materialistic explanations for all such experiences; she has had her own tragic encounter with the unexplained. In fact, it became the inspiration for her book. Twenty years ago while her husband was away on his last expedition, attempting Everest’s then unclimbed Northeast Ridge, Coffey took a rock-climbing course with some of their

Author John Geiger says he’s tracked down 110 stories of people in states of extreme danger, or near death, who felt they received guidance from a sensed presence, including a survivor of the World Trade Centre collapse, who received instruction from a spectral voice on how to escape with his life intact.

Jaynes made a splash with his book The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind. The unwieldy tome belied a revolutionary thesis: that our modern form of consciousness is only a few thousand years old. In prehistoric times, people perceived the voices generated by the non-dominant hemisphere as the voices of the gods, Jaynes insisted. They were often directed by this “inner voice” to go about their daily tasks. Is the Third Man factor the evolutionary hangover of this bicameral mind – a sort of vermiform appendix of consciousness? Is this the source of the muse of Hesiod, whose voice had faded even by the Greek poet’s time? Yet vocal hallucinations aren’t all that uncommon in the modern age: A whopping 10 percent of people claim to hear voices in their lifetime and most of these experiences aren’t psychotic. Nor should we forget the common phenomenon of “imaginary friends” of young children, and, of course, the mocking voices of paranoid schizophrenics. The muse may not be as far away in time or space as we think. The ideas of Persinger and Jaynes also link to the mysterious phenomenon of what Stanford psychologist Ernest Hilgard called “the hidden observer.” In his experiments with hypnotized subjects, Hilgard determined there was some aspect of the self that remained independent of the hypnotic state. It seemed to have a greater level of awareness than normal waking consciousness. Is the muse no further than our non-dominant cerebral hemisphere, or some other part of the brain? Coffey herself remains agnostic about the scientific

friends. While sharing a room in a hostel one night, as she dreamed she was “running down a village street, wailing and distraught,” her friends recalled her sitting upright in bed and crying out, “Joe’s dead!” She later learned that her dream had occurred only hours after her husband was last seen on Everest. There was also the moment, days after his death, when she sensed her husband’s presence during a car trip with a friend. While she said nothing about it when it happened, the friend later told her she had experienced the uncanny feeling of Joe’s presence at the exact same time. The common stories of premonitions of death in the mountaineering community, and the sudden awareness of the loss of a friend or relative, supply some of the most striking anecdotes in Coffey’s book. The skeptical appeal to “coincidence” or “subconscious cuing” seems laughably insufficient in these instances. For some, stories about the “Third Man” or the “muse” will forever remain superstitious mumbo-jumbo, or at best, REM sleep gone wild. For others, these experiences are part of some spiritual commonwealth, in which the veil between the living and dead momentarily lifts. Those seeking a rapprochement between science and spirituality believe there may be an explanation in “morphic fields,” in which observer and observed are joined in a vast ontological drama, which science has yet to decode. For others, like this writer, it all makes for a fascinating mystery. www.geoffolson.com JUNE 2009

. 17

Meditation as healing technology by Andrew Vidich, PhD

EMPOWERING EXTRAORDINARY HEALTH®

18 .

JUNE 2009

HREE DECADES ago, when I began my meditation practice, I was often viewed as someone out of the mainstream and/or belonging to an Eastern cult. Today, with more than 200 studies having been done on the practice of meditation and its connection between spirituality and health, the tables have turned almost 180 degrees. Wherever I go, people are practising meditation as a means to improving their health and overall well-being. Right now, we are in the midst of a global shift in consciousness that recognizes the healing power of consciousness itself. To achieve maximum health and happiness, we need to reconnect to the source of our being, or consciousness, which is responsible for the health of the body, mind and spirit. Instead of feeling connected and sustained by this source, as long as we remain disconnected, we more often than not feel spiritually adrift and bankrupt and the result is a plethora of spiritual ailments, including depression, anxiety, fear, doubt, hurry and worry, agitation and restlessness – all symptoms of our real dis-ease, which is spiritual emptiness. The fundamental illness we all suffer from is a severe case of mistaken identity. We have forgotten who we are and we have become completely identified with our body and mind. Meditation is the process of reconnecting to the greater consciousness within, which is our true identity. This process of reconnection is characterized by distinct healing properties: It liberates the mind from habituated, reactive, conditioned thinking. It brings us fully and completely into the living present – moment-to-moment awareness. It moves us from selfishness to selflessness and from me and mine to thee and thine. It reconnects us with higher vibratory energies and expanded consciousness, sometimes called unity consciousness. Why is meditation effective? Because as we proceed on the spiritual journey, we are increasingly able to subdue and eventually control our desires. What then arises is an increasing ability to consciously control our thoughts. We have little idea about what is going on in the thought processes of our mind. In fact, brain researchers say we have over 60,000 thoughts per day. Most of these thoughts are largely unconscious, below the level of our awareness. Our minds are like an overgrown jungle with wild animals prowling all around. On an even subtler level of thought, Buddhists call the uncontrolled mindstream “the five unskillful states of

mind,” namely: 1) Fear and worry. 2) Restlessness and agitation. 3) Doubt and uncertainty. 4) Depression and disappointment. 5) Anger and resentment. If we examine our lives honestly, we see how familiar these unskilled states of mind are. We have become so habituated to “unthinkingly” thinking these thoughts that, over time, they cannot help but spill over to influence our words and actions. We have become so identified with these thoughts that we think we are them. We fail to realize that we have a choice in how we think and feel. Meditation shines the light of awareness into the jungle of our thoughts. When light shines in the darkness, the darkness disappears. All the wild animals run for cover, not wanting to be discovered. The light of awareness dissolves these uncontrolled states. The more we come into contact with the self-luminous presence within, the more awareness we bring into our being. Each meditation sitting, if done with full attention and sincere intention, can potentially open the floodgates of inner luminosity, bringing greater clarity, insight and peace. Wherever the sun of divinity shines, the darkness of desire is dispelled. Not only is the practice of meditation a powerful tool in cultivating a deep inner connection with our spirit, it makes us more emphatic and caring, alleviates stress, decreases cholesterol and heart disease and increases our overall health. Meditation has proven to be a powerful tool in treating a variety of chronic and acute diseases. Even more importantly, from a spiritual point of view, meditation is the key to our becoming more conscious and compassionate beings, filled with abiding states of joy and happiness. It is not an overstatement to say that meditation is rapidly becoming the 21st century “technology” for palliative and clinical care and one of the most powerful tools for personal transformation. Dr. Andrew Vidich is the author of Light Upon Light: Five Master Paths to Awakening the Mindful Self. He is also an editor, international speaker and educator who lectures and presents experiential workshops globally. Free seminar, July 1, 7pm: Dr. Vidich presents “Discover the Source: Finding True Peace, Joy and Inner Wisdom Through Meditation,” hosted by Science of Spirituality Eco-Centre, 11011 Shell Rd, (at Steveston Hwy) Richmond. For information, call Linda: 604-985-5840. www.sos.org

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EARTHFUTURE Guy Dauncey

EAR FELLOW citizens of British Columbia:

Now that my government has been in power for almost a month, I feel compelled to report on an urgent reality that received little real debate in the election. I will come straight to the point. I am talking about global warming. Since taking office, I have been handed many reports, many labelled “urgent.” Some merited the title, especially those on homelessness and affordable housing, but even these pale into insignificance next to the report on global warming. I am not going to debate the science, for it has become abundantly clear that the debate about the causes of global warming is over. Any continuation will only delay the action that is so urgently needed.

JUNE 2009

ing parts of Richmond, Delta, Tsawwassen, Surrey, Pitt Meadows, Port Coquitlam, the Vancouver airport and BC’s entire marine shipping infrastructure along the banks of the Fraser. How should we respond? This is the question that has kept me awake at night. It has become clear that the goal adopted under the last government – a 33 percent reduction in our carbon emissions below 2007 by 2020 (10 percent below 1990) – is nowhere near enough. In the lead-up to the Copenhagen climate conference this December, the call is for a 40 percent reduction below 1990 by 2020. As British Columbians, we live in one of the most advanced societies in the world. We should not sit back and

We could create market incentives to produce sufficient Sunday June 14, 2009

electric and plug-in hybrid electric cars.

During the election, we argued the merits of a carbon tax versus cap-andtrade. Both are important, but neither is sufficient to the urgency of the crisis. Let me be clear. Because of the world’s continuing use of fossil fuels, our planet is on a warming trend that may see temperatures rise by 6º C by the end of this century. The last time the planet was this warm was during the Permian period, 251 million years ago, when 95 percent of all species became extinct. Most ecosystems took between four and 30 million years to recover. If we continue burning fossil fuels and destroying our forests, farmlands and grasslands, most of the world’s coastal cities will be submerged by the end of this century. A third of the planet’s land area will be uninhabitable desert. Most agriculture will cease and most humans who survive will become refugees, desperately seeking a new place to live. US Secretary of Energy Dr. Stephen Chu told the Los Angeles Times recently that 90 percent of California’s Sierra snowpack could disappear, eliminating the water storage that is so vital to agriculture. “We’re looking at a scenario where there’s no more agriculture in California. I don’t actually see how they can keep their cities going… I don’t think the American public has gripped in its gut what could happen.” Here in BC, unless we build a sea wall three metres high, most of the Lower Mainland will be under water, submerg20 .

ENVIRONMENT

hope that some other country will take the lead. As your government, we can dream up big policies. We could allow only the purchase of zero-emissions vehicles after 2020 and hopefully incentivize the market to produce sufficient electric and plug-in hybrid electric cars. We could require that every new building be zero-carbon, starting in 2016, as Britain is doing. We could close down BC’s coal, oil and gas industries, using your dollars to compensate the companies and retrain their workers. Unless there was widespread consensus that such measures were needed, however, they would soon become political footballs, their merits lost in the storm of partisan debate. The wisest way forward, therefore, is to ask you, my fellow British Columbians, what we should do. To that end, we are launching a three-month festival of imagination, ideas and solutions, designed to make BC a zero-carbon society by 2030, both domestically, and as much as possible, for our imports and exports too. I am not the incoming premier, but if you send me your ideas, I will reprint the best of them in this column and on the BCSEA’s website, and I will also forward them on to the real premier. Please send them titled “Festival of Climate Solutions” to guydauncey@earthfuture.com Guy Dauncey is president of the BC Sustainable Energy Association. www.bcsea.org

US sets high standards SCIENCE MATTERS David Suzuki with Faisal Moola

AST MONTH, Barack Obama completed his first 100 days on the job as US President. During that brief period, his administration acted to reverse many of the failed and destructive policy decisions of his predecessor, George W. Bush. President Obama is giving the American people hope that positive change is possible. If only we were offered the same kind of hope in Canada. The US president has rejected the

time. Scientists are united in their belief that the planet is in the midst of a biodiversity crisis on par with earlier mass extinction events in the Earth’s history. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, some 16,000 known plant and animal species are currently threatened with extinction. Some scientists believe the effects of climate change alone could result in the premature extinction of 15 to 37 percent

Give your immune system the edge.

Some 550 other species, including caribour and killer whales, are wasting away in legal purgatory while the feds dilly-dally.

rigid dogma of previous US leaders in moving to loosen restrictions on Cuba and offering to engage in peaceful dialogue with Iran. He has injected billions of dollars into science and overturned the Bush administration’s ban on embryonic stem-cell research in an effort to return the nation to its historical leadership role in scientific inquiry and discovery. On the environmental front, he has appointed an outspoken advocate of ocean conservation to head the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, signed into law the protection of more than two million acres of wilderness and made clear his intention to combat climate change, including a willingness to force automakers to produce more fuel-efficient and less-polluting cars. Obama’s commitment to implement the US Endangered Species Act has received far less attention. Earlier this year, the US government restored key endangered species protections that were stripped away by George Bush in the waning days of his administration. In particular, President Obama has reinstated rules that will ensure that government decisions receive independent scientific scrutiny before they are allowed to proceed. In announcing the change, President Obama stated, “With smart, sustainable policies, we can grow our economy today and preserve the environment for ourselves, our children and our grandchildren.” The president’s support for the Endangered Species Act signals a 180-degree turn. Under George Bush, the US did just about everything in its power, including breaking the law, to eviscerate this critical piece of environmental legislation, enacted, ironically, by another right-wing republican, Richard Nixon. President Obama’s support for the legal protection of endangered species couldn’t have come at a more pressing

of species within our children’s lifetime. Sadly, our own government leaders have not come close to matching President Obama’s leadership on endangered species. Canada has had legislation protecting endangered species for six years, but our government has failed to implement the law, known as the Species at Risk Act, according to a report card recently released by the David Suzuki Foundation and its allies. The report found that only one animal, a tiny snail the size of a kernel of corn (it lives in a few hot springs in an existing protected area), has received the full conservation measures required under the Species at Risk Act. At the same time, some 550 other species, including caribou and killer whales, are wasting away in legal purgatory while the feds dilly-dally on completing and implementing recovery plans necessary to prevent their extinction. When it comes to environmental problems, such as climate change and species extinction, the attitude of our “leaders” here in Canada seems to be that we have plenty of time before we have to act. But as our neighbours to the south are finally beginning to realize, that’s not the case. The more we delay, the more severe the problems will become and the more difficult it will be to address them. Our own survival depends on the planet’s ability to provide us with clean air, water and food. We must act now. And, yes, we can!

Your body is constantly at war, holding infection and disease at bay. For over 4,000 years, one herb has been prized above all others for its effectiveness in this battle. The Red Reishi Mushroom. This natural herb boosts immunity and fights stress, while it increases energy. Mikei Red Reishi Mushroom Capsules contain the finest strain of Red Reishi, cultivated to exacting standards by the Mayuzumi family of Japan. Your immune system deserves every advantage you can give it. Ask for Mikei Red Reishi Mushroom Capsules at your local health & nutrition store or visit theONEmushroom.com. If you only take one supplement, it should be The ONE Mushroom.™

Links Obama quote: www.ens-newswire. com/ens/mar2009/2009-03-03-094.asp DSF/Allies Report Card (SARA): www.davidsuzuki.org/files/SpeciesAtRisk_April29.pdf Take David Suzuki’s Nature Challenge and learn more at www.davidsuzuki.org

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. 21

First Past The Post mortem The referendum turned education into a contest and subverted the work of the Citizens’ Assembly. by Peter Sircom Bromley

N MAY 12, British Columbians voted against a new system of proportional representation by a majority of 61 percent to 39 percent. Yet less than half of BC’s eligible voters showed up at the polls, meaning that less than a third of BC’s electorate rejected a proposal that might have made such displays of apathy and imbalance a thing of the past. Where were all the other voters? Some have speculated that they were more concerned about the playoff fortunes of the Vancouver Canucks than the pros and cons of some arcane government regulation. Not hard to believe – but maybe a little hard to accept, especially if you are partly to blame. Provincial elections are now permanently set to occur every four years during the spring playoff season; when questioned about this after the May 12 vote, Premier Campbell was reported to have said, “I think people are quite capable of dealing with hockey and an election.” But this wasn’t just an election. The concurrent Referendum on Electoral Reform was about a complicated governance issue. The public required unbiased, non-partisan information in order to make an important decision. People were offered an opportunity to improve how things work. And God knows there’s a lot to improve. While our transportation and communications systems have developed with staggering speed in the last hundred years, we continue to organize our civic affairs in a way unchanged since the days of the horse and buggy. Voting, the singular act that props up government, has remained a primitive instrument while social issues have become multi-faceted and complex. While voting is a sacred right, it also seems to have become a sacred cow. Since World War II, more than 70 countries worldwide – including Norway, Ireland, Netherlands, Finland, Spain, Austria, New Zealand and Germany – have developed and adopted systems of proportional representation to help modernize the way they govern themselves. There was a recognition that voting systems can contribute to problems in the political system. If British Columbians have any interest in following suit, they will need a better understanding of the forces that affect social change. It might help to review some of the key events that carried us through this latest attempt at electoral reform. 22 .

JUNE 2009

drafted by the premier, with the assistance Politics as usual of high-level ministers, deputy ministers After two bitter BC election results in and staff. It’s essentially a business plan, 1996 and 2001, the provincial governlaying out a general vision along with a ment admitted that the first past the post budget. The speech announced another voting system had some clear disadvanreferendum, acknowledging that “a solid tages, most notably that majority governmajority” supported proportional reprements could be elected with a minority sentation. It then went on to discuss what of votes. Gordon Gibson, a prominent it called a “troubling” issue: why had so author and former politician, was theremany people voted to change the elecfore appointed to find a way out of the toral system? conundrum. Gibson proposed setting up “…and yet that was not enough an independent body to make recommento pass, according to the rules this dations on electoral reform. An assembly Legislature unanimously established. of randomly selected citizens, two from Your government has been clear that each of the province’s 79 electoral disit does not intend to rewrite those tricts, would study the issue and come rules after the fact, or pretend that up with a solution. His recommendations the vote for STV succeeded when it were adopted, and in August 2003, the did not.” Citizens’ Assembly on Electoral Reform Interesting choice of words. Substiwas created. tute the word “recognize” for “pretend” The Assembly held public hearings and we might see a crack forming in the every second weekend for 11 months, stone tablets. Is there examined the faira note of defensiveness, representation ness here? Were and proportionality the results of the of the current votreferendum making ing system. They our political leaders and came up with a question the rules? “made in BC” single Were the premier transferable vote and his associates (STV) system. Party concerened about politics were absent the constitutionality from the discussions of setting the bar too and the social and high at 60 per cent? geographic realities Is voting a sacred cow? Whatever the of BC were taken reason, a clear prefinto account. erence for politics-as-usual could be The Assembly’s recommendations surmised when the throne speech went were put before the people in a referenon to say how public education would dum on May 17, 2005. At that time, the be improved in preparation for the next Referendum Information Office, a branch referendum: “Equal funding will be proof the Ministry of Attorney General, was vided to support active information camresponsible for informing the public paigns for supporters and detractors of about the new voting system. Although each model.” According to sources at the the system was complicated in certain premier’s office, the idea was “to stimuways, 58 percent of eligible voters and a late debate.” Evidently, many other polimajority in all but two of BC’s 79 ridings ticians agreed. In due course, the idea to cast their ballots in favour of proportional fund “active information campaigns” representation. was tabled, passed unanimously by the The numbers, however, fell just short Legislative Assembly and enshrined in of the required 60 percent. Those who Section 4 of the Electoral Reform Refhad actively promoted fair voting in BC erendum Act. were perturbed. Sixty percent is a rather high proportion considering that the 1995 Let the games begin Quebec referendum – which could have What happened next represented a split up the country – only required 51 sharp shift in approach, one that distinpercent. In 1993, a referendum in New guishes the 2009 referendum from the Zealand approved of electoral reform by first one. Whereas the neutral Referena margin of just over 53 percent. dum Information Office handled the task Four months later, the government of of public education in 2005, two opposBritish Columbia pledged to take action ing advocacy groups – British Columbion the close result in the Speech from ans for BC-STV, and the NO-STV Camthe Throne. A throne speech is typically

paign Society – would now each be given $500,000 to run what the government called “information campaigns,” supposedly to complement the work of the Referendum Information Office which also received $500,000. The two groups – now with clearly defined partisan roles – were expected to come up with their own campaign strategies. In other words, public debate would be played out like a kind of sporting event. The task of education would be combined with the tactics of winning. Some of those who volunteered with British Columbians for BC-STV were alumni of the Citizens’ Assembly. For them, it must have appeared that months of non-partisan work would be subsumed by the very political machinations everyone had managed to avoid earlier. For the few who volunteered with NO-STV, things were looking up. NOSTV was an updated version of KNOWSTV, a group that opposed the single transferable vote in the 2005 referendum. KNOW-STV was a bit of a rag-tag group in 2005. Revitalized, and with $500,000 to play with, NO-STV had experienced leadership. The organization would continue to be led by Bill Tieleman, a skilled political strategist, communications professional, and former communications director in the BC premier’s office. As the referendum campaign lurched into gear, it looked like the pro STV team might coast to an easy win. In mid-March 2009, Angus Reid conducted an online poll indicating that 65 percent of British Columbians, especially younger voters, supported proportional representation. There was a sour note in the festive news, however. The same poll revealed that only 44 percent of British Columbians were aware of the referendum. Meanwhile, game plans on both sides were being developed, reworked and implemented on the fly. And the plans were very different. It seemed that BCSTV organizers were not clear on the concept of social marketing, a discipline that uses methods similar to advertising but which, out of necessity, focuses on unbiased, clear information. Social marketing audiences just need the facts. So it might not have been a good idea for the BC-STV campaign to use a cartoon super hero theme that trivialized the rather sober issue of social reform. Their slogan may also have been ill advised. “Power up your vote” skewed the concept of proportional representation, a system that simply makes all votes count; it doesn’t give voters special continued p.34…

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Certificate Courses Twenty hours of expert instruction plus forty practicum hours prepare you to practise reflexology competently. $325. See Datebook. Advanced Reflexology Certificate Courses Refine and expand your knowledge to enhance your effectiveness practising reflexology as a hobby or professionally. $325. All courses are

offered on a regular basis year round. Courses accredited CMTBC. For registration, or, information: Pacific Institute of Reflexology 535 West 10th Ave/ Cambie, Vancouver, B.C. V5Z 1K9. (604)875-8818 Fax: 875-8868 Website: http://www.pacificreflexology.com Email: chrisshirley@pacificreflexology.com

Registered Massage Therapy: A Career in Demand Utopia Academy – Faculty of Massage Therapy is now accepting applications for September 2009. Registered Massage Therapists are recognized as licensed health professionals under the Health Canada Act. This intense 3000+hour program prepares

graduates to write the licensing examinations set by the College of Massage Therapists of BC. Utopia graduates have achieved an overall pass rate of 92% on the BC Licensing exams. All faculty instructors are licensed health professionals with years of clinical experience. Utopia Academy is fully accredited by the CMT and is conveniently located

in downtown Vancouver with easy accessibility to the Skytrain. For more information about our program or to register for our next introductory massage workshop, please contact us at 604-681-4450 or visit our website at www.utopiaacademy.com. Start your health care career today!

Inspiring individuals to Master the Healer within! • Learn powerful Bio-Energy Techniques. • Master the Law of Attraction. • Experience Accelerated Healing. • Explore secrets of the Chakras with exciting, interactive processes!

Michael D’Alton brings healing modality to Canada! • Experienced Teacher, Practitioner and Inspirational Speaker. • Michael’s advanced training skills help you ‘get it’ into your body. • His approach is fun and easy to learn!

Training: Free Seminar, Level 1 Workshop, Level 2 Diploma 604-688-5177 info@daltonsbio.com www.daltonsbio.com Clinic: 604-685-4325 www.electrahealthfloor.com

Learn massage therapy while enjoying the sun and sea of Hawaii. Our “State of the Heart” professional program provides you with the knowledge, skills and confidence to open your own bodywork practice. Our 650-hour certification program is one of the most affordable anywhere at only $4,800 US. Part-time (12 month) and Full-time (7 month)

programs begin every September and March. Curriculum includes Anatomy & Kinesiology, Swedish, Lomilomi, Hydro & Spa Treatments, Deep Tissue & NMT, Assessment & Treatments, Shiatsu, Sports & Therapeutic Exercise, Reflexology, Body/Mind Integration and a fully supervised public clinic. The school is located on the island of Maui, where the warm

ocean, gentle climate and lush tropical beauty encourage deep relaxation and exploration of the healing process. Student visas available for 7 and 12 month programs. For more information and a free catalog, write Maui School of Therapeutic Massage, PO Box 1891, Makawao, Hawaii 96768. Phone: 808-572-1888 or visit our website at www.massagemaui.com

PHOTO READING NEW! “Discover a faster more efficient path to success through PHOTO READING.” – Jack Canfield “Increase your reading speed and absorb the information quickly and easily.” – Anthony Robbins Join Us! October 2, 3, 4, 2009

Discover the Magic of Crystals

1215 Madison Ave. Burnaby, BC Crystal Healing Sessions by Appointment

Coastal Academy Hypnotherapy Training Program

HELP OTHERS HEAL www.coastalacademy.ca

Leslie McIntosh

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JUNE 2009

Two day workshop August 15-16 (Sat-Sun, 10am-5pm). Energize and align your body, mind and soul while leanring how to use crystals in your healing practice. You wll learn about chakras, dowsing, grounding, basic layouts, girding for healing and more. 604-431-7474 www.lomi4life.com

• Internationally recognized instructors • Personalized, holistic teaching • Personal growth • Tuition includes “How to get your first 20 clients”! • Business Development & Marketing assistance included • Financing available • See website for student testimonials. FREE EVENT “Secrets of Hypnosis” Register: 604-542-1914 Limited seating

Teaching the Original Bowen Technique 604-608-4295 www.bewellnow.ca

FREE INFORMATION SESSIONS: Suite 509, 5th Floor 5021 Kingsway, Burnaby Tel: 604.433.1299 www.pcu-chm.com

RAW FOUNDATIONS Culinary Arts Institute

Discover the magic of organic, raw, living foods for radiant health!

Bowen Technique is an incredible fullbody therapy ideal for treating pain and inflammation by simply stimulating the body to reset its stuck patterns of reaction whilst addressing chronic and acute pain, posture and alignment. Next class date October 9.

Study Traditional Chinese Medicine, Acupuncture or Spa Therapy at PCU College of Holistic Medicine and public TCM clinic. PCU offers professional clinical training in holistic medicine at its new, state-of-the-art campus near Metrotown. English and Chinese classes available.

Raw Food Chef & Instructor Certifications! Learn the fundamentals of the raw food diet, continue with gourmet meals and the science behind them. NEW: Raw Desserts, Raw Chocolate & Peak Performance. See Datebook section for upcoming classes. 778.839.8424 www.rawteacher.com/missjanice

education and certification

The Pacific Institute of Advanced Hypnotherapy New Westminster, B.C. www.hypnotherapyBC.com

Become a Certified Clinical Hypnotherapist 160 hr diploma course provides the very best training. PCTIA registered. Earn: Hypnotist, Master Hypnotist, Clinical Hypnotherapist and IMDHA certification. 778-397-7714 hypnotic@shaw.ca Ph: 604-524-9766 for a private hypnotherapy session with Sherry Hood, M.H., C.CHt.

NLP 1-800-665-6949

A woman is like a tea bag- you never know how strong she is until she gets in hot water. – Eleanor Roosevelt VANCOUVER & WHISTLER

NLP-Based Coaching Training Fast-Track Summer Intensive Leader in NLP Training for 28 Years Free Introduction to Coaching Event: June 13 info@erickson.edu www.erickson.edu 604-879-5600

WSMSS offers a unique program that reflects our passion for holistic wellness. Part-time 600 hr (6 months) Diploma Program starts JULY 6, 2009. Experience hands-on training at Solarice Wellness Spas. Evening classes. Earning potential $30–75/hr + gratuities,100% employment rate upon graduation. bruce@solarice.com

HEALTH & HEALING

PACIFIC Institute of REFLEXOLOGY

PCTIA registered. Most courses tax deductible

Healing Through Movement with

Elena Deljanin

Expect Wonders! Registered Doctor of TCM Former Instructor of TCM at Langara College

28 Years Clinic Experience Extended Care & MSP Accepted

116 - 828 West 8th Ave Vancouver: 604-876-8618 www.chinese-medicine.ca

Wellspring Vision Improvement Program

Making a positive difference

Dr. Weidong Yu www.TCMRP.com

Break Through! Healing Sessions for Change

Enjoy Deep Blissful Relaxation! Reflexology is taught and practiced as a potent, safe way to free stress and tension, relieve pain, improve circulation, and facilitate the body’s healing process. Gentle, soothing stimulation of foot, hand or ear reflexes revitalizes your whole body. Private Sessions $50. Student Clinic: Tuesday evenings. Revitalize

yourself, you deserve it; sessions only $18. “FOOT REFLEXOLOGY: A Step-by-Step Guide” DVD or video. Enjoy pleasurable, quality time with your family and friends following expert step-by-step guidance. $22.95 Training: Certificate courses prepare you to practice reflexology competently. $325 (See

Books, charts and self help tools available. Enquire about franchise opportunities. Pacific Institute of Reflexology 535 West 10th Avenue @ Cambie Vancouver, B.C. V5Z 1K9 Phone: (604) 875-8818 Fax: (604) 875-8868 www.pacificreflexology.com email: chrisshirley@pacificreflexology.com

CREATE A HEALING SPACE AROUND AND WITHIN YOU!

Private sessions and group sessions available in North Vancouver.

• Develop healthy movements in relation to space and time. • Work with chronic disease towards healing.

• Live in your heart. • Develop intuitive thinking. • Change your future by building healthy relationships and achieving your life goals. • Combining different techniques to suit individual needs.

Dr. Peter Zhou, a qualified MD and a former hospital director in China. He has been practicing in Vancouver since 1997, treating skin and pain disorders with a 95% success rate. Patients from England, Norway, France, Australia, Singapore, Fiji and Japan have sought his treatments.

Skin Disorders • Eczema • Skin rashes • Skin allergies • Psoriasis • Rosacea • Dermatitis

Pain & Other Disorders • Neck and back pain • Bell’s palsy (highly effective) • Headache, Sciatica • Arthritis, Tendonitis • Disc Syndrome • Stress and Depression Please read our Online Testimonials.

Body Troubleshooting Use unique TCM Naturopathy to treat the roots of the problems, help your self-healing system work well. One treatment can see a definite improvement, and a breakthrough or a cure can be achieved through a healing program (10 treatments).

Quick-fix problems include: • Chronic pain due to strain and accident injury like sore & stiff neck-shoulder, frozen shoulders, bad elbows, lower-back pain, sciatica, migraine, bad mobility, etc. • Hard-to-cure ailments caused by chronic diseases or dysfunctions of organ system.

We also treat arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, chronic fatigue syndromes, cancer risks, etc. For details please visit www.handyhealthcentre.com 604-608-8786, 604-781-4728 #180 - 422 Richards St. Vancouver Monday ~ Saturday 11am ~ 9pm

Wellspring Vision Improvement Program (WVIP) is developed in 1999 by Dr. Weidong Yu, a world renowned Doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine. WVIP is a comprehensive Holistic health program based on Chinese herbal medicine, Acupuncture, Acupressure, Qigong, Food and Nutrition. WVIP may be

beneficial for patients with conditions such as:

For appointment, please call 604-737-7876 Dr. Weidong Yu, Dr.TCM Wellspring Clinic 916 West King Edward Ave. (south east corner of King Edward Mall at Oak & King Edward) Vancouver, BC

Are you ready to be free from old patterns, chronic injuries & illness? I am an empathic, intuitive healer that uses three powerful healing modalities for life changing results.

neck issues, & balances the central nervous system so that your body can heal itself.

Cranio Sacral Therapy (CST): Relieves stress, heals chronic fatigue/pain/ injuries, headaches/migraines, TMJ, back/

Education and Certification Listing).

• Acne • Shingles • Herpes • Hives • Vitiligo • Wart

* Retinitis Pigmentosa * Red eyes, Dry eyes * Macular degeneration * Eye fatigue * Glaucoma * Far sightedness * Eye Bleeding * Blurry Vision

Somato Emotional Release (SER): Releases ‘energy blocks’ that are stored in your body’s cellular memory to help shift old patterns and resolve unhealed emotional events and physical injuries.

Call 778-899-3590 or 604-980-0482. elena.semenets@gmail.com

Reiki: Channels healing energy to where your body needs it most: compliments & increases the effectiveness of both CST & SER. HEATHER GRAY 604-736-6871 Call for a free consultation. JUNE 2009

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HEALTH & HEALING EASE C E

expert diagnosis

INE

TRAD

CHINES

SKIN DISEASE TREATMENT

Extended Care & MSP

Vancouver Homeopathic Academy

Diane Smithers

Bowen Technique Visceral Manipulation Craniosacral Therapy 204-1114 W. Broadway Vancouver, BC

604.617.1463

Quantum Health Biofeedback

Bonnie Cottrell

Dr. Andy Zhou (PhD) is a renowned Professor of TCM, Dermatologist, Registered Doctor of TCM, and Acupuncturist. He has worked with people worldwide and successfully treated most of his patients with his unique, herbal formulas. He has provided expert diagnosis in his Vancouver practice since 1996.

Homeopathy is individualized, wholeperson healing for body, mind and spirit. We immerse you in this elegant healing art through dynamic classes, hands-on learning in our Student Clinic, and oneon-one mentoring. Our courses are taught

These gentle modalities enhance the normal tone and motion of organs and tissues and encourage the body to release its held patterns of tension. They treat chronic pain, problems of structure and alignment, digestive issues and stress. www.iahp.com/dianesmithers www.broadwaywellness.org

• Psoriasis • Eczema • Atopic dermatitis • Dermatitis • Acne • Vitiligo • Hives • Skin allergies, Rashes, Itching

by Canada’s most experienced professional homeopaths with the goal to develop each student’s inner homeopath, equipped with the knowledge and skills to succeed. Designed for adults, our class lectures are part-time with accompanying assigned

THE HAPPY COLON since 2000

Elena Lopez I-ACT certified colon hydrotherapist

• Back pain • Fatigue • Stop smoking • Weight loss

Chinatown Office: 604-605-3382 ANGELA LIU LIU ANGELA

Chinatown Centre Medical Clinic Doctor of Traditional Doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine#165 - 288 E. Georgia St. Chinese Medicine Main St. Office: 778-239-7989 Registered Acupuncturist Registered Acupuncturist Balance Acupuncture & Massage #105 - 4338 Main St. Trained in Canada and China

Homeopathic Vaccines

Boost Immune Systems for Drug-Free Children

604-605-3382 Trained in Canada and China.

• LIVE BLOOD ANALYSIS • IRIDOLOGY • BIOLOGICAL TERRAIN ASSESSMENT

www.qwest4health.ca

Complete Colon Care Center Cheryll Thomson

I-ACT Certified Colon Hydrotherapist 153-5951 Minoru Blvd., Richmond by appointment only 604-790-9589 cthomson777@yahoo.com

Valerie Kemp Craniosacral & Lymph Drainage therapy and now…

Brennan Healing Science

604-739-9916 26 .

JUNE 2009

COMPLETE HEALTH EVALUATION Get a powerful insight into your own body regarding: pH imbalance – allergies – parasites – candida – digestive difficulties – inflammation – anemia – heavy metal – immune disorders – toxic stress – nutritional deficiencies – hormone imbalance – cholesterol – circulation ….and many more Office: 604-531-3480 qwest4health@telus.net

Jenny Lou Linley Certified Hellerwork Practitioner

733-0339

By cleansing the colon of impacted and putrefactive waste matter, colon hydrotherapy offers relief from a variety of disturbances: • Constipation, diarrhea, gas or bloating • Low energy • During cleansing or fasting programs • Assists absorption of food • Of benefit for weight control

Back from sabbatical and a recent graduate of the 4 year international Barbara Brennan School of Healing. With over 20 years of experience, join Valerie in co-creating your healing journey of self-discovery, possibility, freedom and vibrant health! By appointment. Please call 604-739-9916. Long distance sessions available.

studies and learning. Foundation year begins October and completes in June. We welcome your inquiries – learn more at www.homeopathyvancouver.com or call 604-708-9387

Colon Hydrotherapy dates back to the Egyptians who used it in its most basic form, the enema. Modern equipment today uses purified water at preset pressure and temperature to cleanse the large intestine (colon). By appointment only: 604-525-8400 # 360 - 522 7th St., New Westminster, B.C.

“Believe in Miracles” Anne has dedicated 20 years studying Holistic Wellness, with an emphasis on The Law of Attraction. Having personally experienced numerous miracles, she credits her connection with the spiritual realm for protection, healing, and regeneration. Anne guides clients through a step-by-step process towards receiving their miracles.

Biofeedback is extremely effective at reducing stress through restoring energetic harmony within the physical body. Bonnie Cottrell is a Certified Biofeedback Specialist. For appointments & more information within the Lower Mainland area call: 778-888-7817 or Laurie 604-814-2718.

Free Initial Consultation ACUPUNCTURE ACUPUNCTURE • Gynaecological, digestive and skin issues HERBAL MEDICINE HERBAL MEDICINE

Dr. Andy Zhou, PhD, DR. TCM Skin Disease Centre of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Regent Medical Building 330-2184 West Broadway (@ Arbutus) Vancouver, BC, V6K 2E1 By appt: 604-736-6060 www.TCMdermatologist.com

Keep your child drug-free with ‘Constitutional’ Homeopathic Care. New study shows Homeopathic Immunization Protocol (HIP) is over 90% safe and effective. No needles. Children can start at any age. Over 200 year history. For appointments: 604.568.4663 info@accessnaturalhealing.com www.accessnaturalhealing.com

Deep tissue release results in an expanded, lighter, more alive state of being. Interactive dialogue connects mind, body, spirit. Movement awareness supports postural changes. Good for injuries, carpal tunnel, thoracic outlet, chronic back pain, joint problems, stress, tension, personal growth. A profound experience! FREE 1/2 hour consultation.

Beautiful Feet Wellness Centre offers high quality (i.e., essential oils, Chinese herbs) but low priced Chinese meridian style feet and body massage at 2622 West Broadway. Price: $33~$38 / 50~55 minutes Hrs: Mon-Sat: 10am-10pm, Sun: 10am-6pm Call: 604.569.3816 Visit: www.BeautifulFeet-wellness.com.

Reconnective Healing: radiant and permanent well-being physically, mentally and emotionally. Align with your true nature The Reconnection: cellular activation and alignment to universal light grid, knowledge Reconnect! and information. Theta Healing: change your beliefs, change your attitude, change your life. 604.839.0154 Massage: relax, invigorate, rejuvenate. reconnection@telus.net www.TheReconnectionCanada.com

Anita Hafner

HEALTH & HEALING

LOVE HEALS Anne McMurtry, Ph.D. Reiki Master AWAKENING MIND Intentional Healing Download coupon at www.awakeningmind.ca for

50% off your first session with

DAVID RAPHAEL

(604) 689-8034

I offer healing sessions blending Reiki, crystals & gemstones, channelling, sacred sound, aromatherapy and colour healing. Past Life Regressions and deep trance work also offered. Ongoing workshops offered in Reiki I, II & III, Crystal and Gemstone Training. Please call 604-734-8219

Dandelion Healing Centre #205 – 175 East Broadway

604-872-3665

www.dandelionhealing.com

Our natural state is radiant health. But when we experience stress, energy becomes stagnant or even blocked. Bio-Energy Healing restores your natural energy flow, awakening new possibilities for health, relationships, prosperity, creativity and spiritual path. To find out more and read testimonials, visit: www.awakeningmind.ca

All human actions have one or more of these seven causes: chance, nature, compulsion, habit, reason, passion, and desire. – Aristotle

Dayle Baykey R.N. now offers Integrative Energy Healing, Cranial Sacral Therapy, Bodywork, Meditation and Healthy Lifestyle Consultations for assistance with newly diagnosed and chronic medical conditions and mental health and addiction issues. Decrease stress, relieve pain, gain insight and find meaning by exploring your body/mind connection.

The Alexander Technique is a method of mental and physical re-education which teaches how to use our body to its best advantage. Private lessons, workshops, and CANSTAT certified, PPSEC registered teacher training. #110-809 W 41st Ave. Vancouver

EDGAR CAYCE CANADA Offers a wide range of natural health products based on the Cayce material related to holistic health as well as literature, books and CDs on personal spiritual growth. For a free catalogue call 1-866-322-8209 or info@edgarcaycecanada.com

FOOT REFLEXOLOGY A natural healing art to relieve stress, improve circulation, balance body systems. Introductory offer to new clients. Also offer Aromatherapy Massage, 100% pure essential oils to heal the body and mind. 426 Willingdon Avenue, Burnaby Selina Tang 604-727-4366

INTUITIVE ARTS

Geri De Stefano-Webre Ph.D.

604-649-5590 PsiTherapy@gmail.com

Learning Beyond the Five Senses

Bonnie Cottrell Baljit Rayat

Akashic Record Consultation

PsiTherapy© is a unique blend of Dr. Geri’s psychic and therapeutic abilities. As an internationally- respected psychic she has been able to provide insights to thousands of clients around the world. Dr. Geri offers a choice of concise and accurate readings to fit your needs.

With Bonnie’s tarot card courses learn how to effectively read and interpret tarot cards on a more intuitive level. The aura courses will let you become aware of the energy and colours of the auras around us. For course information and readings call: Bonnie Cottrell at 778-888-7817

Baljit is a certified Akashic Record Consultant under the Soul Journeys® Method. With access to the Akashic Records, you can connect to your soul path and release blockages that limit you. Baljit teaches the Akashic Records, Reiki, and is a Zenith Omega TM practitioner. Healings by phone or in person. 778-288-6236 www.lotusdestiny.com

HOME TO VANCOUVER’S BEST PSYCHICS. Since 1996, walk-ins are welcome 7/7, 11 to 5. Ask for Chanel “the Clairvoyant other psychics consult.” Across from The KEG restaurant, 1526 Duranleau St. 604-734-3354 info & map @ www.psychicstudio.ca

“The reading I had with Geri was one of the most educating readings I have ever had... She touched on some things only I know about myself; no other psychic has ever mentioned some of those things...” - V.C., S.F. Ca.

Shelina Manji

778-230-9773 www.satorireiki.com

Lorrin Munn 778-885-0273

www.shanaleegibson.com

DEEP POWERFUL CLARITY Shantam Heidtke

604.728.4458

25 years experience

DIVINE HEALING FOR ALL

An honest man can feel no pleasure in the exercise of power over his fellow citizens. – Thomas Jefferson

Mary-Lee channels God’s loving divine healing and guidance to all levels of being. Angels, guides, and a person’s ancestors are always part of the session. Come and be refreshed! Mary-Lee Michael 604-351-2682 (North Shore)

Private and confidential sessions provide solutions you need to create a Life you love! Telephone readings. Intensive Psychic Development Class Spring 2009 – Info: www.DrPsychic.net MC, Visa 1-877-266-7337

Inspired Intuitives offering empowering intuitive/channeled sessions. Connections with source, higher self, akashic records, angels, ascended masters, guides, power animals and reiki energy. Readings provide clarity, guidance and inspiration in all areas of your life. Be Inspired! Readings, Classes, Special events.

PSYCHIC BOOTCAMP Flex your psychic muscles and realize your true spiritual talents. Navigate undisclosed locations guaranteed to set your psychic wits on end. Detective work, auras, telepathy – experience it all! Join us for a safe, fun and mind-blowing experience. Check website for dates and to register.

Are you at a crossroads in your life? Ready to find answers? • Providing deep reflections through channelled insights. • Assistance also to those with Medical/Physical ailments. • Rooting out the causes step by step. CranioSacral Balancing, Cellular Memory Release, Channel of “The Elder”. www.northamericanshaman.com

CHANNELLED READINGS BY DR. ANNE McMURTRY. ANNE’S ABILITY

opens a line of communication between you and your Spiritual Guides, allowing them to speak directly to you. To inquire call Dr. Anne McMurtry at 604-734-8219, VANCOUVER. See ad in Health, Healing section. JUNE 2009

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NUTRITION Want to lighten up in 2009? You’ll find sound approaches to weight management in the new Raw Food Revolution Diet and in the well-loved classics Becoming Vegetarian and Becoming Vegan. These books are reader friendly, packed with sound nutrition information, and highly respected by dietitians and other health professionals.

See these as well as Raising Vegetarian Children and the Food Allergy Survival Guide at Banyen Books, other stores, online and at libraries. Visit Vesanto Melina’s website at www.nutrispeak.com

ORGANICS 100% BC Grown Grass-fed & Certified Organic Meats beef • lamb • pork chicken specialty poultry

Healing the Land through Agriculture... a new concept for the protection, restoration and healing of BC’s native and farm lands. 1600 Mckay Rd. (behind indigo books off Marine) North Vancouver, 604 988 6280. Deli and wholesale: tue-fri 8:30-6, sat 10-5. www.pasture-to-plate.com

What are you feeding your skin?

Detox your body & our world. Learn how simple changes make a big What are you feeding your skin? With Miessence it is 100% difference. For more information please contact beneficial ingredients. independent representative Joanna Runciman. With Miessence it is 100% beneﬁcial ingredients www.actualorganics.com

ActualOrganics.com

PSYCHOLOGY, THERAPY & COUNSELLING

Midlife?

Feeling Purpose-less, depressed, empty?

Free midlife workbook

TODAY is THE BEST DAY OF YOUR LIFE to MAKE THE CHANGES that PUT YOU IN CONTROL. NOW

What Is Possible? Toni Pieroni, M.A. Registered Clinical Counsellor

ARE YOU READY FOR A CHANGE? Lorraine Milardo Bennington M.Ed. (Counselling) Reg. Psychologist #815

Therapy of the Whole Person John Arnold Ph.D. Therapist / Counselor since 1975

604.261.2788 28 .

JUNE 2009

Discover your personal strength - it lies in the coping style that has gotten you this far; shift depression to hope. Free yourself from fears of unfamiliar feelings that block growth toward creativity and intimacy. Deepen and enrich your connection with others. Create the life you deserve.

In a safe environment, learn to value your power, and your vulnerability; change learned patterns; allow wishes, hopes, and dreams to surface. Call me for info on emdr • Creative/Career Blocks • Addictive Behaviours • Trauma/Abuse: Physical, Sexual, Emotional • Depression • Anxiety • Grief/Loss

• Relationship (from romantic to roommates) I have 20+ years experience as a therapist with adults, adolescents, and couples. Clinical Supervision Available. For free initial consultation or information call: 604-802-4126, VANCOUVER www.jaminiehilton-counselling.ca

Are you dreaming about a life that is passionate and full, a life that is richly purpose-driven, abundant in success, joyful, and genuinely grounded in making a meaningful contribution to humanity? Everyone’s dream is particular and unique. And the Golden Threads of this Great Dream for your life are in the entanglements of your midlife symptoms.

Michael Talbot-Kelly, BPE, MH, MA, RCC A Registered Holistic Psychotherapist & Destiny Coach with 25 years of experience healing the body, mind and soul.

Michael Talbot Kelly’s work stands second to none... through knowing Michael, I have given myself permission to have great abundance in my life. – MK, Doctor, Vancouver, Canada

Dr. Bonnie Meyer Doctor of Clinical Hypnotherapy Specializing in: Anxiety, Depression, Relationships, Conflicts and Goals.

Dr. Meyer is a Counselling Psychologist, Master Practitioner of NLP and Time Line Therapy™, Certified Clinical Hypnotherapist, Reiki Master, Huna Practitioner, Metaphysician, and Certified in the Natural Healing Arts.

Call for a free telephone consultation. 604-676-8048 www.mindsolutionslimited.com

Freedom from the beliefs, feelings and behaviours that result in emotional pain and repetitive, reactive patterns that keep you stuck. Life’s options open up as you learn to respond rather than react, resulting in: • Healthy, intimate, satisfying relationships • More success in work and career

• Joy, ease and pleasure in life itself • Aliveness and authenticity Some issues dealt with: • Emotional, physical and sexual abuse • Addictive and obsessional behaviour • Relationship issues and co-dependency • Anxiety and depression • Self-expression

About Toni Pieroni: Along with my professional training and skill, I bring over 20 years of personal development experience. I offer individual and couple therapy. For further information or for a free introductory session, phone 604-737-0168. Or visit our web address: www.counsellingbc.com/listings/tpieroni.

You can overcome your limiting beliefs and open up to your joy! Success Coaching Hypnotherapy - Weight Loss/Stop Smoking, Athletic performance, Blocks to Success/Fear of failure, Age regression, Anxiety, Phobias Couples Counselling

Lorraine Milardo Bennington, success coach, psychologist and hypnotherapist, has been practising hypnosis for over 30 years and skillfully integrates intuition and hypnotherapy into her coaching and counselling practice. Lorraine gently guides people in the process of transformation, assisting

them to connect with their higher selves and to reclaim joy and personal power in their lives. Lorraine has returned to Vancouver after 10 years living, studying and working on Kauai and Maui. 604-871-4342 transformance@mac.com

Only by Working With the Whole Person Can You Achieve Truly Permanent and Effective Change.

it is because you have not gotten to the root causes. Completion of any problem comes only when you have resolved your issues physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually and the underlying reasons for repetitive patterns of behavior are uncovered

and resolved. If you are fed up and want to do something radical about your predicament, give me a call 604-261-2788 or visit my web page at www.members.shaw.ca/ johnarnoldphd/

If problems and issues keep popping up in your life and you are STILL STUCK,

Call Michael at 604-317-1613 to set up a FREE 15 minute phone consultation or sign up for a FREE MIDLIFE WORKBOOK!

michael@mtkhealing.com www.mtkhealing.com

Excellent therapy at affordable rates.

PSYCHOLOGY, THERAPY & COUNSELLING

Founder, Elly Roselle PCTIA Accredited

(604) 536-7402 www.corebelief.ca

“Life Between Lives” Past Lives & Spiritual Regressions Rifa Hodgson, CCHT The first certified LBL therapist in Western Canada

1-888-606-TIME (8463)

STELLA CHARALAMBIDIS MA, PhD (candidate)

Registered Clinical Counsellor Vancouver

(604) 730-1907 stellach@telus.net

MAHARA BRENNA 30 years

Holistic Health Educator Mediator Master Rebirther

604.221.0787

Mary Bennett CREATIVITY + CONNECTION Workshops & consultations for individuals, partners and teams. www.marybennett.net

Are you ready for real and lasting change in your life? Core Belief Engineering has been getting results since 1985 by revealing the core belief systems motivating all of our behaviours. Through a gentle dialogue with aspects of your mind, you identify and transform limiting beliefs into a life-enhancing base that supports your conscious choices.

CBE is for you: • If you are looking for a breakthrough in your life • If you want to free yourself of limiting patterns and compulsive behaviours • If you want to open and strengthen your connection with your own deeper consciousness.

Barbara Madani Eaton Registered Psychologist #335 Transform Curses Into Blessings Vancouver 604 876-4313 www.powerpsych.com

Past-Life Therapy

Alison L. Longley Registered Clinical Hypnotherapist

I Listen… 604-616-6400 www.breakthrough-hypnotherapy.com

(604) 536-7402 – www.corebelief.ca

If you want to recover the real self, reconnect with your energy and creativity, refine skills to realize your goals and reinstate your personal power - request an appointment. We will transform curses into blessings using: • EMDR • Power Therapies • exploration of feelings and reframing beliefs • goal setting and decision making

Energy Psychology Release yourself from negative beliefs and

REBIRTHING IS STILL THE MOST POWERFUL TOOL TO HEAL the emotional baggage of the past & to come into deeper connection with your Source, Vitality & Purpose. A 3-hour session includes: counselling, rebirthing, Psychology of Vision™ reprogramming with an infusion of Light and Spiritual Guidance.

Clinical Hypnotherapy & other Therapies

Over 28 years Nicklas Ehrlich, M.S.W., R.C.C. FREE Initial Consultation tel/office app. 604-990-1584

Mary Bennett is well known for creative, participative, engaging workshops that enhance understanding of self and others. Consultations using Myers-Briggs Type Indicator© Step II enhancing creativity and collaboration. Custom-designed team sessions using a variety of tools. 604-617-0142 marybennett@telus.net

STEPPING INTO FREEDOM Weight Loss Counselling Services

Shawn Venne Registered Clinical Hypnotherapist EFT Practitioner

Past-Life Therapy Di Cherry is a Certified Clinical Hypnotherapist. Member Canadian Hypnotherapy Assn. www.dicherry.com 2678 W 11th Ave, Vancouver. For information or appointments: 604-731-2646 or dicherry@telus.net

YOUR GATEWAY TO THE PAST

Founder Elly Roselle offers private sessions and a PCTIA accredited certification program.

Nicole Koch, M.A., CHt, Ericksonian Hypnotherapist, Certified Solution Focused Coach, Certified NLP Trainer. Individual sessions in person or by phone. Groups, course development and training. Call for a free 30 min session today: 604 669 0005 nicole@lightpointcoaching.com Over 9 years of experience.

“For those of us who have had the opportunity to actually see our immortality, a new depth of self understanding and empowerment emerges.” - from “Journey of Souls” by Dr. Michael Newton, LBL Founder. Offices: West Vancouver and Gibsons 604-741-7944 www.lifebetweenlives.ca

Inner Work to transform problems into solutions, heartbreaks into breakthroughs, internal enemies into allies. In a safe and caring environment work through: unhealthy patterns of relating, depression, anxiety, childhood traumas, self esteem, grief and loss. Effective therapy using a multidisciplinary approach.

CBE works holistically with your mental, emotional, physical, spiritual and social beliefs and concerns.

subconscious programming at the cellular level that causes stress and sabotages your success: physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, relationally, financially & in your career. Counselling – Coaching – Workshops. 2 for 1 Relaxing Re-programming CD at: www.EhrlichAndAssociates.com

HAVE YOU STRUGGLED FOR YEARS WITH LOSING WEIGHT? Often what seems like lack of Will Power is really deep unconscious resistances to change. I can help you eliminate the resistances, find the Will Power and perhaps even find yourself. www.steppingintofreedom.ca 604-842-5382

FREEDOM from insomnia, migraines, pain, fears/phobias, stress, anxiety, panic attacks, anger, depression, ADHD, OPD, stuttering, nail biting, addictions: tobacco, alcohol, cocaine, meth, food, gambling. Heal yourself from demons including sexual abuse. Gain confidence, Enjoy Life to the Fullest.

Free yourself from the burdens that weigh you down! Past-Life Regression, Cancer Support, Psycho-Spiritual Guidance, Pain Management, Prenatal Classes, Anxiety and more. Experience a unique combination of techniques catered to your individual needs. Hypnotherapy, NLP™, HypnoBirthing®, Time Line Protocol™, PSYCH-K®.

I don’t care what is written about me so long as it isn’t true. – Dorothy Parker

VEGETARIAN RESTAURANTS

Vegetarian Restaurant 3932 Fraser

& 23rd Ave. Vancouver (604) 873-3848

Serving traditional Buddhist style vegetarian food since 1960. Come sample over 200 vegetarian dishes. Operated by Chef Ho formerly of Bodai. Open 6 days a week from 11 am to 9:30 pm, closed Tuesday. Rated Best Vegetarian Restaurant in Vancouver Magazine’s 9th Annual Restaurant Awards. Call for reservations. 604-873-3848.

T h e

Restaurant

The Naam Vegetarian Restaurant For years voted “Best Vegetarian” in the Georgia Straight and in Vancouver Magazine’s “Readers’ Choice”. Open seven days a week, 24 hours, licensed, wood fireplace, heated patio, live music at dinner. 2724 West 4th Ave. 604-738-7151. JUNE 2009

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VEGETARIAN RESTAURANTS

Sweet Cherubim Heavenly Wholesome Food

1105 Commercial Dr.

Our friendly family owned restaurant serves international vegetarian cuisine. We specialize in organic, vegan, raw and sugar-free entrees and desserts. Voted “one of the best” in Vancouver Courier 2009. Call 604-253-0696 Open 7 days for your Conscious Indulgence! Mon-Sat 10 am-10 pm, Sun 11 am-10 pm

It takes a great deal of courage to stand up to your enemies, but even more to stand up to your friends. – J. K. Rowling

RESTAURANTS

Lounge & Restaurant

Come and indulge in traditionally fresh Indian cuisine. Taste the rich homemade aromatic spices, succulent dips and satisfying sauces combined with only the best of ingredients to create the ultimate eating experience.

A Family owned and operated Indian restaurant, Desi fuses tantalising, Indian fine dining with relaxed cocktail lounge sophistication. Boasting modern spacious surroundings, Desi pleases the eye as well as the palate!

Desi Junction 8821 120th Street, Delta, BC Phone: 604.592.6360

www.desidowntown.ca

ethical kitchen

1600 Mckay Rd North Vancouver

604 988 6280

EAST IS EAST EXPERIENCE THE EAST WITH YOUR TASTE BUDS

3243 West Broadway 604-734-5881 Chai Tea House Upstairs & 2nd location 4413 Main Street @ 28th 604-879-2020

Come in and enjoy a 100% organic menu focused on local foods. Everything is made in house, down to our wildcrafted berry sodas! Our deli features only pasture to plate grassfed meats and BC cheeses. OPEN: Tue- Fri 8:30 - 6, Sat: 10 - 5

“East Is East is a place where you are encouraged to talk to your neighbours. This is definitely not the Ritz, but it certainly is Kits. From plumbers to publishers, hippies to generation whatever, this place has special appeal.” - Owen Williams, Common Ground Visit our new location 4413 Main Street @ 28th 879-2020

Indian Cuisine Eat in / Take out

2313 Main Street

Savour an Indian culinary experience while enveloped in the mysterious ragas of classical Indian music. Winner of West Ender’s Silver Medal for Best Indian Restaurant 2004-2005. Delicious selection of vegetarian and vegan specialties. Open 7 days a week for lunch & dinner. 2313 Main St., Vancouver 604.872.8779 www.nirvanarestaurant.ca

There are three rules for writing the novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are. – W. Somerset Maugham

SPIRITUAL PRACTICES

Science of Spirituality

Sant Rajinder Singh

Sahaja Yoga Meditation

Self-Realization Fellowship

Paramahansa Yogananda, Founder (1893-1952)

“The more you feel peace in meditation, the closer you are to God.” - Paramahansa Yogananda

“Meditation lifts us above life’s storm clouds into the radiant skies of inner Light.” ~ Sant Rajinder Singh is a spiritual Master in the Sant Mat tradition. He enables others to experience the divine Light and Sound of God inherent within. www.sos.org

RICHMOND Science of Spirituality Eco-Centre: Sun. 10 am-12 noon, also Wed. 7-8:45 pm. 11011 Shell Rd @ Steveston Hwy. Info: Judy 604-530-0589 VANCOUVER: 2nd & 4th Wed. 7-9 pm Info: Linda, 604-985-5840 ~~All are welcome. All programs are FREE~~

Enlightened Living Seminar DISCOVER THE SOURCE: Finding Peace, Joy & Inner Wisdom thru Meditation With Andrew Vidich, PhD Wednesday July 1, 7 pm Science of Spirituality Eco-Centre To register call Linda, 604-985-5840

“Sahaja Yoga is different from other Yogas because it begins with SELF REALIZATION. It is important for everyone to have that knowledge of the roots within ourselves. Sahaja Yoga allows the individual to become his own Spiritual Guide.” – H. H. Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi

Are you a seeker? Have you been searching for that subtle source of peace & contentment within? Do you want to lead a happy & balanced lifestyle? If so, please join our FREE Ongoing Meditation Classes in BC and Ontario. Various BC classes are held in Vancouver - Fridays - 7pm: 604-726-8149 New Westminster - info: 604-524-9371

Surrey - Wednesdays at 7pm: 604-597-8440 Langley - Saturdays at 2pm: 604-597-8440 www.freemeditation.ca For classes in Greater Toronto Area please call 1-866-850-YOGA or visit www.sahajayoga.ca

We all share a desire for love, happiness, and inner freedom. Paramahansa Yogananda, author of Autobiography of a Yogi, came to the West to spread the Kriya Yoga meditation technique, which fulfills these desires through scientific God-communion. Self-Realization Fellowship groups practice

scientific methods of yoga meditation for awakening direct personal experience of God. These techniques enable you to more easily attune your consciousness with the divine consciousness, and thus rediscover your soul qualities of peace, harmony, and lasting happiness. All are welcome.

Vancouver Meditation Group 171 West 6th Ave ph: 604.250.4050 www.vancouvermeditationgroup.org Victoria Meditation Group 202-2504 Government St. ph: 250.588.3235 info@victoriameditationgroup.org www.victoriameditationgroup.org

Make life a celebration. The Art of Living courses improve health and give greater happiness by eliminating stress through a powerful breathing technique that purifies and rejuvenates the mind and body. Teacher trained by His Holiness Sri Sri Ravi Shankar. Contact: 604.228.8728

Aquarian Truth Centre 1217 Nanaimo St. Vancouver Contact: Karen or Linda

604-258-0031

Program subject to change without notice. Right of Admission Reserved

30 .

JUNE 2009

Aquarian Foundation teachings will revitalize your philosophy about life on planet Earth and life hereafter. Come find out about “Tomorrow’s Religion Here Today.” God calls you now! Worship Services: Sunday 11 AM – Spiritual readings available. Wednesday 8 PM – Spiritual Healing Service.

Canada needs an innovation agenda INDEPENDENT MEDIA Steve Anderson

IG TELECOM’S monopolistic control over the net is threatening to leave Canada with a last generation Internet. We have fallen behind many European and Asian countries, in terms of Internet access, speed and cost, and have toppled from second to tenth place within the 30 *OECD countries. Our broadband connection speeds have also fallen below the OECD average and in the area of cost versus speed, we rank 27th. In the 2009 Federal budget, the Conservative government pledged to commit $225 million over the next three years to provide broadband to unserved communities. In contrast, Australia, which has a similar geographic breakdown to Canada, is reportedly committing AU$4.7 billion to a similar initiative. Not only is the Conservative’s commitment relatively week, it also does little to get Canadians hooked up to next generation networks. Canada lacks what it needs most – a national plan. A new approach could put Canada on a path to a “New Deal” for broadband – a path to a better Internet for everyone, for free speech and open innovation. Real competition A national broadband plan should necessarily include the creation of real competition in ISP markets, which means

creating a plurality of ISP ownership types, including municipal and community/non-profit ISPs. The fiber-tothe-home networks appearing in countries like the Netherlands and Denmark are often developed in partnership with local municipalities or utility companies. Municipalities, utilities and community organizations should be encouraged, and in some cases publicly financed, to enter the Internet service market. Municipal governments are especially well positioned to inject much needed ISP competition. University of Toronto professor of Information Studies Andrew Clement points out that municipalities “have many critical assets, including significant financial resources, control over rights of way, as well as experience in developing and operating other complex, capital-intensive infrastructures, such as roads, waterworks, and transportation systems.” In fact, many municipalities own high-speed fiber networks that they can utilize relatively easily for Internet service provision.   Models that work Within our borders, we have workable models for Internet provision – Fredericton, New Brunswick’s municipal/co-op ISP is a great example. In 2001, Fredericton’s city council created e-Novations,

CULTURE A national plan could put Canada on a path to a “New Deal” for broadband.

its own fiber carrier. Fredericton later launched the Fred-eZone wireless network offering free connectivity across the city. Fredericton now provides access to its fiber backbone and a city-owned organization handles installation and general services. The Intelligent Community Forum (ICF) named Fredericton one of the Top Seven Intelligent Communities of 2007. ICF presents the award to “communities or regions with a documented strategy for creating a local prosperity and inclusion using broadband and information technology to attract leading-edge businesses, stimulate job creation, build skills, generate economic growth and improve the delivery of government services.” Open access Another way to increase ISP competition is to mandate Bell and other network operators to provide open access to independent ISPs, making these telecom companies more like utility companies rather than Internet gatekeepers with competing services. Bell is fighting the open access option tooth and nail and has even resorted to lobbying the federal Cabinet to overturn the existing, relatively weak equal access rules. According to Teksavvy, if Bell’s lobbying efforts are successful, it will “inher-

Countdown to Copenhagen

EFORE THE economic levees burst, letting loose a wave of bank failures and bailouts, it seemed like the future of the planet was actually of vital importance to politicians. But, as the recent sidelining of climate change at the G20 meeting indicated, politicians are now bent on firming up the old world order, rather than having any real interest in laying the foundations for a lowcarbon future. It doesn’t bode well. The Guardian recently polled 250 leading climate scientists, of which only 18 thought governments were doing enough to prevent temperatures from rising higher than the target of 2C above pre-industrial levels and most thought temperatures would rise by 4C by the end of the century. In December, we’ll get a better sense of what substance lies behind the green rhetoric when the nations of the world meet to broker a new agreement to replace the Kyoto Accord at the two-week Copenhagen Climate Conference. UK filmmaker Franny Armstrong

(McLibel and Drowned Out) believes Copenhagen may be our last chance. Her latest film, The Age of Stupid (www. ageofstupid.net) offers a realistic vision of what the world will look like if action on climate change doesn’t happen soon. Part documentary and part drama, the film stars Pete Postlethwaite (Brassed Off) as the last man alive in a devastated world in 2055. London is under water and Sydney has been destroyed by fire. As he reviews footage from 2008, he asks why we didn’t do more to halt climate change when we had the chance. Interwoven with this futuristic fiction are six individual documentary stories, including an Indian entrepreneur starting up a low-cost airline, an 82-year-old French mountain guide who has watched the rapid melting of local glaciers and a wind farm developer fighting local lobby groups in England. The indefatigable Armstrong has assembled a team that has created as much a movement as a movie. From the start, the film had an unconventional path to pro-

duction. It was “crowd-funded” by selling shares to disparate groups and individuals, and it has been released through both traditional and theatrical channels, as well as via a multitude of grass-roots vehicles in the UK. It had a solar-powered, lowcarbon world premiere in London’s Leicester Square in March, with simultaneous screenings across the UK. Critics have praised its passionate tone, animations and handling of subject matter. We may have to wait until the fall before we get a chance to see the movie in Canada, but you’ll no doubt hear more about it before then. Watch this space. In An Inconvenient Truth (2006), Al Gore suggested that we have “just 10 years to avert a major catastrophe.” That puts us in the timeframe of an earlier ecological disaster movie, Soylent Green (1973). Charlton Heston plays a cop solving a sinister conspiracy in an overpopulated world being baked by the greenhouse effect (the term “climate change” had yet to be coined). Gas-guzzlers clutter the streets of Manhattan in 2022 (no

ently all but remove unlimited Internet services in Ontario/Quebec and potentially cause large increases in Internet costs from month to month.” The ramifications of this would have Bell and other big telecoms increasingly calling the shots in terms of how much independent ISPs are allowed to offer their customers, thereby further strangling those that compete with Bell’s own Sympatico service. The time is right With the world economy in a slump, now is the time to mandate net neutrality and open access and to replicate municipal ISP models that work in cities and towns across the country. This will create jobs in the short-term, while also sustaining social, cultural and economic innovation in the long-term. On July 6, the CRTC is holding a hearing on “traffic management.” In lieu of a viable national plan, Canadians should tell the CRTC to support the open Internet and an innovation agenda. Get involved at http://saveournet.ca *Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Steve Anderson is the national coordinator for the Campaign for Democratic Media. steve@democraticmedia.ca

FILMS WORTH WATCHING Robert Alstead

sea level rises in this dystopia) and people pedal bicycles to generate electricity. The seventies-style futurism is strangely reassuring (and entertaining). We’ve come far; even a Hollywood formula movie like The Day After Tomorrow is capable of providing potent images of how nature can turn on us. Hopefully, politicians will have the vision to act too. Toronto’s Hot Docs, the biggest documentary film festival in North America, finished last month with a 42 percent increase in attendances over 2008. The opening film, Act of God, is about the metaphysical effects of being struck by lightning. Jennifer Baichwal, the Toronto filmmaker behind the visually eloquent Manufactured Landscapes, questions the randomness of such an event through seven lightning-strike stories. Intriguingly, Fred Frith, renowned guitar improviser, personally demonstrates the ubiquity of electricity in our bodies and the universe. (Opens June 5 in Vancouver.) www.youneverbikealone.com JUNE 2009

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for datebook rates email: datebook@commonground.ca

1st Annual

Datebook

Festival

of India Jhalak Jhankar Jalwa June 27, Noon - 9pm Holland Park, 100th Ave/King George Hwy Surrey Near King George Skytrain station

The Sanskriti Cultural Awareness Society of BC is proud to present this free inaugural cultural extravaganza, a blend of multi-dimensional and multi-ethnic presentations that connect todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s modern world with the wonders of 5,000 years of civilization and ancient traditions. In its wonderful objective to promote cultural harmony, festival highlights include presentations from numerous states of India. People of Indian decent from India, Nepal, Fiji, Mauritius, Guyana, Trinidad, East Africa, South Africa, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Britain will be presenting their arts and crafts exhibitions, food stalls, traditional clothing and unique cultural traditions. There will also be classical & Bollywood dances, singing and instrumental recitals to fill your heart with joy. Come out and enjoy this festive family event for the whole day. Free parking at SFU Surrey Campus across the street from the festival. Visit www.humarisanskriti.ca Email naman@humarisanskriti.ca or call 604-767-4366 or 604-783-5352 for more information. Rajesh Chawla and Sanjeev have volunteered their time to help organize this event.

Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival celebrates its 20th Anniversary season in Vanier Park to Sept. 26. Check www. bardonthebeach.org for details. [photo: David Blue] JUN 5-7 Basic ThetaHealing Certification Workshop in Vancouver with Loretta Mohl. Information: www. CanadianCollegeofHealingArts.com Call: 780-910-5052 Or email Loretta@CanadianCollegeofHealingArts.com JUN 7 Full Moon Festival of Humanity: Join us for a presentation and group meditation for world service. Presentation 3pm, Sunday, YWCA Hotel, 733 Beatty, CANFOR Room. Donations gratefully accepted. Meditation for Planetary Peace on the Full Moon, Sunday June 7th, at 7:30 PM. 2950 Laurel St, Vancouver. www.pranichealing.ca/vancouver.htm June 12-14 Adyashanti on â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Journey of Awakeningâ&#x20AC;? a weekend retreat including recent satsangs on DVD; at the Swanwick Centre in Victoria (Metchosin) -www.

Wendesday Nights

Best of Chai Live at Vancouverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Hottest World Fusion Venue

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JUNE 2009

Investment $945. Call 778-839-8424. www.rawteacher.com/missjanice

JUN 13 Raw Food Chef Certification! Our fundamental course teaches how to go raw and make delicious meals! 2-6pm $150 Call: 778-839-8424. Max 8 Students. www.rawteacher.com/missjanice

JUN 27 Festival of India - Free. 12-9pm, Holland Park, near King George Skytrain station, Surrey. Enjoy music, dance, bollywood & classical Indian and lots of yummy food. Ph: 604-767-4366. www.humarisanskriti.ca

Shamanic Drumming & Dreaming Circle: Sat. June 13, 7-10pm. Journey the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Dreamtimeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; for insight/ healing with your Nature Spirit guardians. Vancouver Multi-Cultural Society, 1254, W. 7th. Donation. Earthsong Healing Circles. 604-418-9636. www.shamanichealing.info

JUN 27-28 Raw Food Instructor Certification- Do What you love! Extensive gourmet meals, sprouting, dehydrating, coaching. Opportunity to teach, have own business & website. 11am-7pm $795 Prerequisite: Raw Food Chef Certification (June 13 or 25) www.rawteacher.com/missjanice Call:778-839-8424. JUN 27-29 Silent Retreat: An opportunity to recharge, re-balance and discover the peace within at the Self Realization Meditation Healing Centre, Sunshine Coast. Personal retreats can also be arranged at any time. www.selfrealizationcentrecanada.com 1-604-740-0898.

JUN 20 Wolfsong Chanting Circle - Summer Solstice Celebration: Sat. June 20, 7-10pm. Participate singing shared sacred healing chants from the Spirit of the Land. Vancouver Multi-Cultural Society, 1254 W. 7th. By donation. Earthsong Healing Circles. 604-418-9636. www.shamanichealing.info JUN 21 Shine: Didjeridu Master In concert, 7:30pm @ Trinity Church, 1805 Larch st. Kitsilano. Tickets $20 @ Banyen. Shine_like_thesun@hotmail.com

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JUN 25 Raw Food Chef Certification! Our fundamental course teaches how to go raw and make delicious meals! 630-930pm $150. Call: 778-839-8424. Max 8 Students. www.rawteacher.com/missjanice

JUN 25, 27 & 28 3-Day Intensive Raw Food Chef, Coach & Instructor-Certification. Do what you love! L1-Our fundamental course teaches how to go raw and make delicious meals! L2 - Extensive gourmet meals, sprouting, dehydrating, coaching. Opportunity to teach, have own business & website. Max 8 students.

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JUL 1 â&#x20AC;&#x153;DISCOVER THE SOURCE: Finding True Peace, Joy & Inner Wisdom through Meditationâ&#x20AC;? with Andrew Vidich, PhD. For info on this FREE seminar, contact Linda: 604-985-5840 or lbagga@telus.net

JUL 10 Introduction to Foot Reflexology commences Certificate Weekend Training Course. Introduction 7.30pm $10; Course $325. Pacific Institute of Reflexology (604) 875-8818. www.pacificreflexology.com SEPT 5 FaerieStar Chakra Circle: Four year program. Commitment by semester. Awaken your Chakra System through the Magick of the FaerieStar. www.faeriestarchakras.webs.com

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Classifieds SUNDAYS AUG 9

ALL LEVELS HATHA YOGA RETREATS

A Course in Miracles ongoing study groups Shamanic Drumming and Dreaming Circlemeet every Sunday morningfor 10:30 am toexperience 12:30 pm of (South 7-10pm. Introduction personal insight/ Burnaby) andyour Tuesday evening toguardians. 9:30 pm (North healing from Nature Spirit7:30 Totem At Vancouver), NO CHARGE â&#x20AC;&#x201C;Society, donations Vancouver Multi-Cultural 1254,only. W. 7th. By Call SusanEarthsong @ 604-987-6985 details and directions. donation. Healing for Circles. 604.418.9636.

SALTSPRING ISLAND, Long Weekend Sept 4-7 & OCT 16-18. MEXICO Feb/2010. Certified Teacher Dorothy Price www.dorothyoga.com 1-250-653-4655.

www.shamanichealing.info Free, anonymous, telephone support line: Guided meditations for people suffering from chronic A pain. Non-religious. Counselors have community crisis line training. 7-11pm, 604-936-5683.

CLASSES

SOS (Science of Spirituality): See Resource Directory listing in Spiritual Practices for schedule in Richmond, Vancouver & Victoria. 604-277-1247. All Welcome. www.sos.org TUESDAYS Reflexology Student Clinic: 6-10pm. One hour sessions $18. By appointment only. Pacific Institute of Reflexology (604) 875-8818 www.pacificreflexology.com WEDNESDAYS Hawaiian Medicine Circle 7pm Hawaiian guided meditation, Sharing the Aloha, tea and snacks. $10 donation. At Hale Ola, 1215 Madison Avenue, Burnaby. 604-431-7474 Call Kamu Kaimana FRIDAYS â&#x20AC;&#x153;Destiny Dialoguesâ&#x20AC;? Free Talks First Friday of each month, experiential evening that explores the inter-connections between destiny and suffering, relationships, vocations, joy, teachers, character, nature, family, dreams. 7-9pm. 604-317-1613. GIVE PEACE A CHANT! Energize yourself with the yoga of KIRTAN, Sanskrit call and response yoga chanting, healing mantras and sound vibrations in a friendly community setting. No experience necessary. New schedule: 1st, 3rd, and 5th Friday nights only, 7:30 pm, $10-20 by donation, 2111 W. 16th Ave @ Arbutus, www.givepeaceachant.org Just Dance! Three Fridays a month. Alcohol & smokefree. 9pm, 2114 W. 4th Ave. @ Arbutus. $10/5. www.justdance.ca. ONGOING Free Meditation Workshop: Experience Kundalini awakening through Sahaja Yoga, as taught by Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi & enjoy your Powers at our Weekly classes, always free and open to all. 604-597-8440, www.sahajayoga.org. Unitarian kids believe in their ability and responsibility to make a difference in the world. Programs for kids 3 years and up, 370 Mathers St., West Vancouver, 604-926-1621, www.nsuc.ca.

LEARN TO HEAL WITH ENERGY PSYCHOTHERAPY Dynamic Harmony Training Program

UPCOMING EVENTS Profound Healing and Ensouling Sat-Sun, June 6-7 OR July 4-5; 9am-6pm Multi-Dimensional Transformation Sat-Sun, June 27-28; 9am-5pm FREE healing circles â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Wed. evgs Facilitator: RĂŠmi Thivierge MSW RSW RMFT Events are in Vancouverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s West End Info or Register: 604-662-7837 www.dynamicharmony.com info@dynamicharmony.com

TAKE UP A THERAPEUTIC HOBBY - BEADING - make your own jewelry or shop for gemstones, findings and made-in-Canada artisan jewelry. Retail/ wholesale 604-469-3327, www.ssstudio.org

EDUCATION VANCOUVER COLLEGE OF REIKI SCIENCES: Training, Support. Intensives, Individual, Distant. Reiki I $175, Practitioner $275, Advanced $395, Master $795. Aura Surgery, Chakra & Crystal Training. Manuals/ Diploma. Pain & Stress Management Sessions. Call for personal treatments. Registered Teacher CRA. (604)739-0042.

EMPLOYMENT EDUCATIONAL SALES REPS WANTED. Nikkei Canada Marketing Ltd. specializes in the sales, marketing, and distribution of red reishi mushroom supplements to the Natural Health sector. If you are interested in helping others and have sales experience, please forward your cover letter and resume to HR@nikkeicanada.com $20 per hour plus bonus. Only successful applicants will be contacted.

Discover the Source

by colour therapist. Full spectrum lighting. Full kitchen. Piano, sound system. Patio, summer flower, side yard. Centrally located, Vancouver, BC Free parking. Gerald (604) 264-0714

Andrew Vidich, PhD Author of â&#x20AC;&#x153;Light Upon Lightâ&#x20AC;?

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OFFICE FOR RENT NEAR CAMBIE AND 5TH Avenue. Great room for consultation, planning, coaching and therapy. Seminar Room Available for classes. 604879-5600 ext 26.

SKIN DISEASE TREATMENT DR. ANDY ZHOU, PHD, expert diagnosis and treatment, 604-736-6060, drandyzhou@gmail.com, www.TCMdermatologist.com (See ad in Resource Directory, Health & Healing.) TAROT

VANCOUVER TAROT TRAINING INSTITUTE: Spiritual theory, practical training/supervised practice. Learn to empower clients. P/T or F/T career (certificate provided). Pain & Stress Management Sessions. Classes/individuals/correspondence/intuitive readings by phone or in person. 604-739-0042.

Wednesday

July 1, 7 pm

VOLUNTEERS VOLUNTEERS NEEDED for Festival of India celebration of whole day of music, fun on June 27th Saturday at Holland Park, King George Skytrain station, Surrey. Please phone 604-767-4366 or 604-783-5352 or email: naman@humarisanskriti.ca web site www.humarisanskriti.ca

Science of Spirituality Eco-Centre 11011 Shell Rd, Richmond For more info on this FREE seminar

sos.org

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. 33

…FPT Post Mortem - from p.22

super-hero powers. For its part, NO-STV presented its case against the single transferable vote in straightforward terms. Its website featured a banner with smiling, ordinary people. However, its message played on fear and ignorance. One of its main arguments was that the new system would be too complicated. It made a highly misleading comment about how votes would be unaccountable, saying, “You may never know where your vote went.” To emphasize its point, NO-STV cleverly presented a rather amateurish video produced by the Citizens’ Assembly. The information in the video was good; presentation was not. Point scored by the no side. Perhaps NO-STV’s most effective strategy was to use television and large print advertising just days before the referendum. Their slogan “don’t take a chance with British Columbia’s future” sowed seeds of doubt but conveyed nothing of substance. It was left to the Referendum Information Office to provide information in a way that would allow people to make an informed decision. It placed a few newspaper ads and had a website. The website provided a quick comparison of the existing and proposed voting systems and had links to the Electoral Reform Referendum Act and to the BC-STV and NO-STV campaigns. Perhaps they thought that was enough. Was there more? Not sure. One thing is for certain: the Information Office had a low profile. A non-partisan issue In the final analysis, achieving electoral reform in BC – or anywhere for that matter – is as much about the way the issue is perceived and handled as it is about the issue itself. And bringing change to government seems to require an extra, and perhaps unnecessary, level of effort and debate. Other kinds of social change, such as the replacement of typewriters by desktop computers, happen all the time. People adjust. What’s so precious about a voting system? New Zealand’s experience with proportional representation was no less difficult than ours. It had similar numbers and was hotly contested, but unlike BC, New Zealand had a two-step referendum: one in 1992 and one in 1993. The first allowed voters to decide if they wanted a change and, if so, which type of proportional representation they would prefer. A year later, the second referendum allowed voters to decide between their old first-past-thepost system and the new system chosen in the first referendum. Turnout for the first referendum was just over 50 percent, but the result was 84 percent in favour. The second referendum brought in proportional representation with just 53.4 percent of the vote, a plurality of five percentage points less than that achieved in BC’s first referendum. New Zealand also had special interest groups campaigning for and against reform. However, voters were treated to 34 .

JUNE 2009

a massive non-partisan government-run information campaign. The difference between success and failure seems to have been a lower bar and a higher level of education. In BC’s case, one million dollars divided between two partisan groups could have been better spent by the neutral, and experienced, Referendum Information Office. If we are to grant free speech to special interest groups, then voters at least need to be literate about the subject at hand. According to Dennis Pilon, a political science professor at the University of Victoria, the quality of information delivered to the public was not only poor, but there also wasn’t enough of it. A damning enough assessment in itself. But there was also a basic lack of understanding of process set in motion by the premier’s office, followed without question through the Legislature and followed with resignation by those who supported positive change. After all the expense, time and effort put into the work of the Citizens’ Assembly, the rug was pulled out and the issue divided into opposing camps. The referendum was run like a contest rather than an educational process. And to some, it seemed unacceptable that, in order to win, the yes side required 60 percent of the vote. In a postmortem letter to his fellow campaign workers, BC-STV organizer James Douglas Roy wrote that his group “played by the unfair, blatantly self-serving and illegitimate rules set down by the same political establishment that benefits from the current electoral system.” Social reform is, and always will be, a non-partisan issue. It can be dramatic, especially if there are extremes of opinion involved, but it has to be handled dispassionately and with respect for due process. Differences of opinion can’t be left to the tactical skill of one side or another. If there are legitimate reasons to doubt the value of the single transferable vote, and if the Citizens’ Assembly’s recommendations need a fresh perspective, then revisit the issue and broaden the scope of the debate. Proportional representation is not a new idea. It has been around for more than a century and since the Second World War has come to dominate European politics. It’s not perfect, but it can be fine-tuned as it is put into practice – an important point to remember. And it is certainly more democratic and inclusive than a voting system based on good guy/bad guy, winner-take-all values. Partisan contests are fun if you’re a hockey fan. Definitely not fun if you’re serious a voter. Peter Sircom Bromley has worked as a journalist, designer, writer and art director. He also fulfilled the role of communications consultant with the non-profit sector for 10 years and served on several boards, including the Sierra Club of BC and the Stanley Park Ecology Society.

On Track Zodiac JUNE 2009 Adrien Dilon

ARIES (Mar 21 – Apr 19) A leopard cannot change its spots, but it can turn habits into rewarding experiences. Sometimes, you don’t change life, but it changes you. If it is ludicrous to remain in the past while living in the present, don’t be economical with the truth. TAURUS (Apr 20 – May 21) Sometimes, you just have to sit like a frog on a lily pad and do virtually nothing. More than ever before, you may feel like recharging your batteries away from the proximity of other people. Take in the sights and smells from a different vantage point and regroup. GEMINI (May 22 – Jun 20) How many identities does one need to fulfill the many facets of one’s being? Perhaps even two sides can’t offer enough channels to cater to your multitudinous desires and cravings. The pressure to break through self-perceptions may be reaching a breaking point. You are, however, about to “flower.” CANCER (Jun 21 – Jul 22) Words and ideas will fly from your tongue as inspiration ignites your creativity. You aren’t willing to submit to any notion that would have you doing anything less than exactly what you intend. Your belief in yourself is demonstrated now. Nail your colours to the mast.

LIBRA (Sep 23 – Oct 22) You may feel a tender touch from the benevolent ones – the silent, yet powerful, brethren who place miracles at your feet without staying long enough for you to comprehend what has just occurred. You can progress by “standing on the shoulders of giants.”

SCORPIO (Oct 23 – Nov 21) If you should fall into the arms of another or your inner passions rise and fall, choose to completely dive into the experience. It is possible you will want to feel the natural – and maximum – high of sensuality. Turn on the full scope of personal luxury. Love can create a frequency of fearlessness. SAGITTARIUS (Nov 22 - Dec 21) Try to have the utmost patience with yourself. Perhaps you cannot see the forest for all the trees in front of you. The truth will be revealed to you in time about why you made the choices you did. Stay tuned to your intuitive, feeling nature and soon enough you will know the “why.” CAPRICORN (Dec 22 - Jan 19) You may find the way you usually think about reality is being blown into bits and creating a number of questions. Along with Stephen Hawking’s theory of the possibility of a universe with 11 dimensions, delving into the world of science could open new doors for you.

LEO (Jul 23 – Aug 22) If you can take the seriousness out of your day-to-day activities, a huge weight will be lifted and the struggle will dissolve. The riddle wrapped inside the knot of illusion will be stamped out and a lotus flower will grow in its place. As your lungs breathe in new possibilities, you can smell the freedom.

AQUARIUS (Jan 20 – Feb 19) The need to trust is paramount. When you take responsibility for yourself, inner dependence deepens your self-reliance and gives you strength. Notice how every decision based on personal, sound judgment creates within you an unbreakable bond. Commit.

VIRGO (Aug 23 – Sep 22) As the masters of utility now convene with the goddess of practicality, you will be able to get much accomplished. Sometimes, a Saturn influence upon your Sun sign can give you immense courage and sustainable energy. Hit the ground running, hot on the heels of your next adventure.

PISCES (Feb 20 – Mar 20) In your world, life has a magical realism. After an arduous, challenging few months where you may have felt much discontent, you’ve decided to change what you feel is within your power to change. Already making decisions for the coming year, you discover simplicity is the key to great comfort.

Adrien Dilon is a clairvoyant consultant and author with 34 years of experience in astrology, multi-media art and healing, adrien.dilon@gmail.com.

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